The Girl Who Keeps on Running
by Marietta1995
Summary: It never occurred to me that Leadworth was a dull place to live. I lived in my own world, a world full of memories of those who I lost, the ones I loved. The village never seemed real. But, one day, I woke up and found something strange... a big blue police box, sitting in front of the house of that one girl... the fiery Amelia Pond. OC/Eleven Amy/Rory
1. Preface: The Strange Blue Box

**I do not own Doctor Who, I hope that much is obvious!**

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"_Wendy! Wake up! It's time for presents!" _

_I groaned, pushing myself up to face the shrill menace wailing in my ear._

"_Who dares disturb my slumber?" I mumbled incoherently. _

_The blonde little girl in front of me pouted. _

"_Wendy…" she whined. "It's Christmas!" _

_The young girl sank to her knees in a pleading manner, looking up at my face with her bright blue eyes._

"_Please?" She begged me._

_A small smile graced my lips. _

"_Why do I put up with you?" I grumbled playfully, moving to stand up. _

_The blonde jumped to her feet and gave the biggest, brightest smile she could muster._

"_Because," She giggled. "I'm your favorite sister."_

""_You're my only sister." I quipped as I made to flop back down into bed. _

_The little girl cried out, lunging forward to try to keep me from going back to bed. But, I kept on falling, and falling… and falling… _

"Wendy."

I blinked rapidly, looking around.

Where was I?

I seemed to be in some sort of swing. My eyes narrowed.

Wasn't I just in bed, talking to…

Oh.

My face fell at the realization and my grip tightened around the chains in my hand. I hated when that happened.

I lost myself… again.

"Wendy?"

My head snapped up and found myself looking up at a familiar face passing by.

"Hello Rory." I said softly, trying to muster up a smile for once. But, nothing appeared, as usual. I hadn't been able to smile for a long time now. Rory understood this, and gave me a hesitant smile of his own before continuing on his way down the road.

I sighed, leaning my head back to look up into the gray, overcast sky. The area was silent, save the few chirps from birds here and there.

It never occurred to me that Leadworth was a dull place to live. For the past month, I had been wrapped up in my own world. Some days I would be aware of the monotonous village filled with grays and other washed out colors. But, most of the time I was wrapped up in my own world, filled with memories of the past, a past where I could smile. It was a dreary existence, but an existence nonetheless.

The sound of footsteps caught my attention. I peered to the side out of the corner of my eye. Two women were gossiping away like little birds. One caught eye of me and frowned, turning to her companion. I could hear their small mutters as they passed.

"…never seen her smile…"

"…face is always blank…"

"…heard she was in the hospital for you-know-what again…"

I closed my eyes and started to swing again. They didn't know anything. They couldn't. No one knew why I couldn't smile; why I wouldn't. I doubt they even knew that I was from America. No one bothered to stop and ask. But, then again, maybe if I wasn't so distracted all the time, people would believe that I wasn't going off to kill myself every five seconds.

Everyone in Leadworth had a strange way of thinking. They immediately judged the newcomers, branding them with social labels to use to warn others with. Some were labeled as 'kind' or 'hard-working' while others carried the brunt of the titles 'unruly' or 'shy.' I never understood the need for it. But, in a town as dull as Leadworth, I supposed that they needed something to keep them entertained.

Unfortunately, within the first few hours of arriving to the small village, my emotionless demeanor had been spotted and I was instantly labeled as 'depressed and suicidal'. To me, the idea was ludicrous. A life is a precious thing, something I knew better than most. To take it willingly…

I shook my head. My parents would have been horrified at the idea. And my sister…

I pushed myself off the swing, falling lightly to the ground. Swinging wouldn't help my problem. I was living in Leadworth to escape the past, not relive it.

My feet followed a familiar path without me having to think about it. I trudged forward, thinking only of my destination, my field. It was right by Amy Pond's house. I liked the fiery ginger. She and her boyfriend Rory were the only ones who didn't think I was unstable in anyway. Their theory was that I had trouble expressing myself. Even if it wasn't true, I preferred that explanation to being suicidal. It seemed so much more normal.

"Look out!"

I jumped, looking around rapidly before a man in ragged clothes rammed straight into me. I fell to the ground, looking up in shock as the man continued to run on with none other than Amy Pond in tow. The ginger, dressed in one of her Kiss-O-Gram uniforms, swung her head back and looked at me with wide, apologetic eyes.

"Sorry Wendy!" She called back as the two disappeared down the street.

I picked myself up, feeling a strange sense of amusement bubbling through my stomach since the first time I arrived here. The pair looked ridiculous, faces mixed with a combination of fright, nervousness, and elation on the man's part. I stood there for a moment before shaking my head and continuing towards the field.

That is, until a flash of blue caught my eye.

I didn't realize that my feet changed directions until I was feet away from the strange blue box. A sign on the top read 'Police Box.' My head tilted to the side pondering what on earth that was. It could have been an English thing. As far as I knew, America didn't have any police boxes like these.

For a moment, I considered continuing on. But, the color had me transfixed. I had never seen a blue that blue before…

Strong colors didn't exist in Leadworth. After living there for a little over a month, I was sure of it. Everything was so washed out, uniform, and proper. But, this box… it was beautiful. I ran my hand across the wooden door, smiling at the smooth texture. My hand fingered the metal handle before I gave it a firm tug.

The door opened fluidly and light poured from the doorway. My eyes widened at the familiar voice from within.

"_Wendy! Wake up!"_

My heart stopped.

"_Wendy… can you brush my hair?"_

It couldn't be…

"_We'll be together forever. Won't we sis?"_

No.

"_Don't worry, I'll be fine…"_

This was impossible.

"_I love you Wendy."_

Tears filled my eyes as her voice ran through my head.

"Abby…" I whispered, hesitantly touching the light emanating from the strange box.

Why could I hear her?

The light wrapped firmly around my arm like fiery tendril of sun. I panicked, pulling back with all my might. My heels dug into the ground as it pulled me closer and closer to the doorway. I continued to struggle, fighting against its iron grip.

What was happening?

However, before I was able to comprehend it further, the light yanked me in with one mighty pull and a strange sensation enveloped me. It was as if I was falling and falling…

…and falling…

I continued to fall, until I knew no more.

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**I hope you guys enjoyed this new fic! Feel free to leave a review if you decide to.**

** Next time: The Beast Below!**


	2. The Beast Below Part 1

**I do not own Doctor Who! Please remember this!**

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Amy sat down on the red bench, looking back and forth between the Doctor and the crying little girl. She didn't understand. He had said that he preferred not to interfere in other's business. If that was true, then why was he here of all places; sitting on some random red bench and staring at the girl as she silently sobbed?

"One little girl crying… so?" Amy asked, slightly exasperated.

The Doctor kept his eyes on the girl as he began speaking softly.

"Crying silently…" He began, speeding through the explanation. "I mean, children cry cause they want attention, cause they're hurt or afraid. When they cry silently, it's cause they can stop."

Amy observed the Time Lord intently as he continued.

"Any parent knows that."

Amy's eyebrows shot up.

"Are you a parent?" She asked, curiosity peaked.

The Doctor glanced at Amy for a moment, eyes sad as he ignored the question. Amy took that for a yes.

"Hundreds of parents walking past this spot and not one of them's asking what's wrong."

Amy looked back at the girl, who was trying to avoid making eye contact with anyone. The Doctor stared at the people passing along one by one, resolutely looking anywhere but the girl.

Amy began to wonder why no one stopped to see if she was okay. It seemed cruel if you asked her. But, before she could consider the matter anymore, a bright flash of yellow light caught her eye.

"Which means…" The Doctor began to analyze, oblivious to the light, "they already know and it's something they don't talk about."

Amy's eyes zeroed in on the source of the flash. For a moment, she found herself staring at a familiar girl with lank brown hair and despondent, gray eyes. Amy gasped in shock as the girl spun around, taking in her surroundings with a terrified glance. She didn't understand… it couldn't be her…

The Doctor turned to the ginger, not noticing the stunned look plastered on her face.

"Secrets," He stated, "They're not helping her so it's something they're afraid of."

"Doctor…" Amy whispered, eyes locked on the figure.

"Shadows"

"Doctor…" She called again, a bit stronger.

"Whatever they're afraid of, it's nowhere to be seen."

"Doctor!" Amy growled.

The Time Lord jumped at her tone and analyzed her paler than usual face and wide eyes. His eyebrows furrowed.

"What is it?" He asked, a hint of concern buried within his curiosuty.

"Look over there!" She pointed across the way. But when she glanced back, the girl was gone.

Her heart sank.

"Where'd she go…" she breathed, whipping her head from side to side, looking for the familiar brunette.

The Doctor looked between Amy and the space confused.

"What am I supposed to be looking at?" The Doctor questioned, slightly amused.

"Don't get smart with me mister." Amy growled. "There was a girl right there."

"Yes, and there's a lot of girls here." He quipped. "Look around."

"No!" She cried, frustrated. "It's someone I know; someone from Leadworth."

The Doctor's face instantly became serious.

"What do you mean?"

Amy closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"The girl I saw. You ran into her that day with the Atraxi."

The Doctor looked straight ahead, eyes glazed as he recalled the day's events. Amy stared at him incredulously as his eyes lit up. He opened his mouth to speak. But, Amy cut him off.

"It doesn't matter if you remember her," she snapped, "but she's not supposed to be here."

"Why?" The Doctor asked curiously.

Amy looked down at her hands.

"Because…" she started, turning to look the Doctor straight in the eyes.

"That girl is supposed to be dead."

…...

I found myself walking down some sort of corridor. Tears ran down my face as my little sister's voice continued to ring clear through my mind. It hurt. Every word, every syllable sent a pain through my heart.

And I wanted it to stop.

I began to cry harder, still shuffling forward through the crowds of people around me. Not one of them looked in my direction. It was as if I was invisible. However, when the sound of someone else sniffling besides me entered my hearing, I stopped. Instantly, something crashed into my back. I stumbled a few steps forward before spinning around. A girl stood there, crying silently into her hands.

The other people passing ignored her as well. The thought made my chest tighten.

No one should ignore a child, especially when they're crying.

I knelt down in front of the girl, ignoring the looks people shot me and gently pulled her hands away from her red, puffy eyes. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I noted that I probably looked the same.

"Are you okay?" I croaked.

The girl looked at me for a moment.

"Did you lose someone too?" She asked.

My heart sank as I stood up.

"Yes." I whispered thickly. "I've lost a lot of people."

The girl looked at me sadly and nodded in acknowledgement. We stood there for a moment in silence. I didn't know what to say. But, the girl eventually broke the silence.

"Where are you going?" She asked quietly.

I frowned.

"I'm not sure." I managed, wiping away the new tears. "What about you?"

The girl copied me and began to furiously wipe the tears from her face.

"I'm going to the travel pipes." She said.

"I'll go with you then." I muttered, not knowing what else to do. I wondered for a moment if travel pipes was another word for a train. "I'm Wendy, by the way."

"Mandy." the little girl stated before leading the way down the corridor.

It took us only a few minutes to reach near the travel pipe. By that time, both of us had managed to compose ourselves. The only sign that the pair of us had been crying our eyes out were our still-puffy eyes. We were both silent as we turned through the winds of the path.

The whole way, I wondered what had made me stop to talk to the young girl. It could have been because she was crying, exactly like me; or because everyone else seemed to avoid her like the plague. But, in all honesty, the reason I opened my mouth to initiate a conversation, something I hadn't done for over a month, was because she reminded me of her.

She reminded me of Abigail.

Mandy suddenly halted.

I looked up quickly, surprised to see a tent blocking our path.

"There's a hole." She said hesitantly. "We have to go back."

I stepped towards the striped tent.

"It's only a tent." I muttered.

The girl shook her head.

"We can't go that way." Mandy stated strongly. "There's a travel pipe down by the air locks if you've got stamps.

I felt a frown spread onto my face.

Stamps?

"I'm gonna go take a look." I told her, hoping we could just walk through.

Mandy stared at me incredulously.

"Are you stupid? You can't go in there."

I gave the girl a blank look.

"Yeah, well I don't have any stamps." I said quickly, stepping forward. "So, it's past the hole I go."

I slipped past the 'Do Not Enter' sign, approaching the tent flaps. But, they were locked.

I knelt down to the bottom.

"You sound American." Mandy observed.

"I am." I replied, before adding. "I used to live in California."

"Why are you here on Britain's ship then?"

"I'm on a ship?" I muttered distractedly, working to pull the bottom up. I could make it through there, but just barely.

"I thought Americans are loud?" She continued. "But, you're so quiet."

"Yup, funny how things work out." I called back as I started to wriggle through. "Coming?"

"Stop!" Mandy yelled. "You mustn't do that!"

But, I had already made it through.

The inside of the tent was dark. A small light flickered from somewhere in the back, barely providing any light.

I struggled to my feet, grabbing some sort of a flash light. After a few moments of fumbling with the device, I found the knob to turn it on.

Light filtered into the tent and my eyes widened.

"What the…" I muttered, staring at the bizarre, tentacle sticking from the ground. I followed the light upwards, feeling my stomach drop more and more as the seconds passed. The beam of light reached the top of the tentacle and I stared at it transfixed. It swayed from side to side.

I stepped backwards and its movements became more violent. I had never seen anything like this in my life. For a moment, I wondered if it was real.

I hesitantly sank to the ground and reached for the flap. I didn't have a good feeling about this.

My intuition proved right when the tentacle lunged. I screamed and rolled back to the edge of the tent, hearing the clank of impact where I just was. The tentacle reared back to strike again.

I quickly scrambled out from under the tent. Eyes wide and breathing hard, I tried to smother the frightened gasp coming from my mouth. My eyes were glued to the tent entrance.

What the hell was that?!

As I began to calm down, I noticed something else. Surrounding me were four hooded men. Each face appeared emotionless. The blank look in their eyes sent shivers down my spine and for the first time in the past hour, I began to wonder what exactly had happened to me. Nothing was making sense. One moment, I had been in Leadworth, examining a strange, blue box. And then the next, I was in the middle of who know where. That's when it struck me.

Was the box the key to all of this madness?

My thoughts were interrupted as the man to my right raised their left hand, pointing his ominous-looking black ring at my face.

A burst of gas sprayed from the stone, and I turned, coughing heavily. My eyes flew to the frightened Mandy and the new girl running up from behind her. I frowned.

"Amy?" I slurred, feeling my vision blur.

What was she doing here?

The gas continued to hit my face and before I knew it, everything started to slow down. I realized that I was being dragged somewhere. Amy's Scottish tone rang out from behind me. My eyes flickered to a new place every second, unable to focus as everything appeared hazy.

For a moment, my mind cleared and I found myself being dragged past a window. My eyes glanced at the square, instantly causing all blood to drain from my face.

Outside the window was nothing but the starry expanse of space.

I pushed myself from the hooded man and ran to the window, hands pressed up against the glass. My eyes fluttered as I tried to comprehend what I was seeing. There was no earth, no sun, and definitely no moon.

A hand wrenched me back as more gas was sprayed into my face.

The world seemed to fade into darkness, leaving me to mumble quietly.

"Space… I'm in space."

…...

I didn't know how long I was out. Only that, when I finally came too, I found myself staring at a creepy painted statue. My body jolted in shock.

I began to panic, instantly jumping out of my chair to find an exit. My eyes spotted the sealed door within seconds. However, I didn't step one foot before a voice blasted through the room.

"Welcome to voting cubicle 330 C. Please leave this installation as you wish to find it."

I gulped, continuing to look around. There was another window and I paled again. I had forgotten where I was.

How in Earth did I make it to space?

"The United Kingdom recognizes the right to know all its citizens."

I turned to the TV screen in front of me, analyzing the 'record,' 'forget,' and 'protest' button. Something wasn't right with this set up. First I find a strange tentacle trying to kill me, and then I'm abducted by strange men in cloaks. Adding the space factor to the equation, I would have said that I was dreaming. Unfortunately the dull headache from the gas told another story.

"A presentation concerning the Starship UK will begin shortly."

My head snapped up and my eyes narrowed at the elder man speaking.

Presentation?

"Your identification is being verified on our electoral role."

I stepped back, falling into the black chair as the results appeared on the screen.

"Name: Wendy Erin Darling."

I stared at the screen. There was no way it could know that…

"Age: 1304"

"What?" I mumbled, looking at the screen. That couldn't be correct…

"Marital Status: Information unknown."

Did I travel in time as well?

The screens flickered and the man appeared on the screen once again. I leaned forward as he began to speak.

"You are here because you want to know the truth about this starship." He stated gavely.

I bit back a hysterical laugh. Of course I was on a starship.

"And I'm talking to you because you're entitled to know. When this presentation has finished, you will have a choice."

My eyes flickered to the buttons in front of me.

"You may either protest or forget."

Forget what?

"If you choose to protest, understand this. If just one percent of the population of the ship do likewise, the program will be discontinued with consequences for you all."

I felt my stomach drop. What did I get myself into?

"If you choose to accept the situation, and we hope that you will, then press the forget button. All the information I'm about to give you will be erased from your memory. You will continue to enjoy the safety and amenities of the Starship UK, unburdened by the knowledge of what has been done to save you. "

The box…

"Here then is the truth about the Starship UK and the price that has been paid for the safety of the British people."

My eyes flitted to the screen in front of me.

"May God have mercy on our souls."

I felt my stomach drop at the statement and all thoughts vanished from my head. I could worry about everything later. I faced the screen and immediately thousands of images poured into my head.

And within seconds, I knew it all.

I was in future on a starship in space, only pulled along by a Star Whale, the last of its kind. Other images burst into my mind. Children were crying. There were deadly solar flares. Everyone had to run, run or burn. Tears filled my eyes and my mind kept flickering to the star whale.

The last of its kind… all alone…

The moment the images stopped, I was on my feet. I couldn't control it. I wanted forget. The star whale was the same as me, the last one standing. I burst into sobs, reaching for the 'forget' button, but I couldn't make myself push it. The Star Whale didn't deserve this life.

My hand drifted to the 'protest' button.

It needed to be free.

A large buzz filled the room as my hand slammed down on the button and I sank to the floor.

Immediately, a large grinding sound emanated from under me and I looked down, wide-eyed to see the ground drop from beneath me.

…...

Amy paced outside the voting room, watching the door intently.

She wasn't crazy. She was sure that she saw the girl from Leadworth. But, the Doctor disregarded it, telling her to follow Mandy instead. Amy had gone along reluctantly. Only when she traced the girl's path, the ginger started to wonder if she'd been imagining the whole thing. She had been feeling guilty ever since the quiet American had gone missing, wishing she would have tried to befriend the girl rather than just greeting her each day.

However, the delusion was broken moments later when she heard the scream. Amy was afraid that something had happened to Mandy and rushed to the source only to see a very real Wendy being dragged off to one of the voting rooms.

Wendy had been in there for a few moments now, and it was scaring her. She didn't understand how the girl had gotten on the Starship UK. She had been missing ever since that day the Doctor returned. Everyone thought that she had jumped off the bridge down south, Amy along with them. Only Rory believed that she didn't do it. He told Amy over and over again that the girl was never suicidal, just mourning. In the end, he was right.

Amy could see it in here face when Wendy first appeared. The girl had been crying and looking around lost, dressed in the same faded jumper and pleated skirt from that fated day. It was obvious that Wendy didn't understand where she was, and the more Amy tried to figure out how she managed to travel in time and space, the more her head hurt.

The ginger sighed and approached the door, ignoring Mandy's half-hearted protest. The little girl was worried about Wendy too.

"Amy?"

Amy spun around, only to find herself face to face with the Doctor. His eyes immediately zoned in on her worried face.

"What's wrong?" He asked quickly.

Amy looked at the door.

"Wendy…" she whispered, "she's in there."

The Doctor opened his mouth to say something, but a combination of two noises cut him off. The first was a buzzer. Mandy's head snapped towards the door. It was obvious from the sounds that the girl was crying again.

Amy's mind raced as she tried to find a possible conclusion to what was happening in there and from the looking the Doctor was wearing, he probably was thinking the same. However, before she could continue on with her train of thought, a frightening sound filled the air, one that made Amy's heart drop.

It was an ear-piercing scream.

The pair jolted, moving to the door, but the sound of Mandy's broken voice froze them. They turned to the little girl who stared ahead of the door, eyes filling with tears again.

"She didn't do it." She whispered hoarsely. "She didn't choose to 'forget.'"

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**Hello everyone! This is the end of the chapter, obviously. I thought I would just clear up how my updating will work. **

**What I want to do is update every week, but let's be honest, it will most likely be once every other week. I'm in the middle of my first semester of college, so I'm still trying to adjust with my crazy schedule. **

**The Final Verdict: Count on this being updated each week. But, let's be honest. There will be times I will the week (like holidays for example). **

**So, I hope you guys are enjoying my fan fiction so far. It's going to be super fun to write! **

**Thanks so much, **

**Marietta**


	3. The Beast Below Part 2

**I don't own Doctor Who... I'm not even sure as to why I'l saying this as it should be that obvious.**

* * *

Initially, when you fall through a trap door, you expect to fall painfully to your death. But, it seemed that fate had a different plan in mind for me when I found that my fall was slowly becoming less vertical and more horizontal. I still managed a scream as I slid faster and faster into the darkness. That was, until the tube stopped altogether.

I flew out of the pipe, landing on a soft, yet extremely moist surface. Discarded gruel laid everywhere.

I struggled to my feet for a moment, ignoring the pounding pain in my skull, only to slip on what looked suspiciously like a brain. I fell to the floor again, completely soaked. My body shuddered as it took in the feeling of the slimy garbage between my fingers. I tried my best not to vomit as I sat up, feeling anger course through my veins.

Was that it then? I chose to protest, so they send me with the garbage? Part of me, the sensible part, urged myself to calm down. But, I had kept all my emotions in check for so long, it was impossible to reign them in again. I stepped to my feet and glared furiously at the garbage chute above me.

"What the hell?!" I shrieked at the tube, grabbing the smarmy food off the ground and chucking it at the pipe. "Just because I disagree with you doesn't mean you can chuck me out like that. So what if I'm American? At least we had a working ship unlike you lot, you _BLOODY IDIOTS!"_

The distant sound of screaming brought me out of my tirade, causing my hands to clamp over my mouth and my eyes to widen. I never yelled like that. In fact, I usually didn't show any emotion at all. What was happening?

My thoughts were interrupted though when a man shot through the tube, crashing right into me. I flew to the ground, groaning at the sharp elbow in my side. I rolled to my side, coming nose to nose with the man. His eyes widened and he speedily scrambled to his feet, offering me a hand. I took it without hesitation.

"Wendy, I presume." He smiled as he pulled out a metal tube.

I gaped at the man before me. How could he know my name?

I analyzed the man's appearance. He was taller than me by a few inches, with sopping wet hair. It had to be a dark color, but I was unsure due to the lack of light. My gaze flickered to his face and then his clothes, slacks, button-up shirt, bowtie, and a tweed jacket.

…A tweed jacket…

My eyes widened as I began to splutter.

"You-you're that-"

Unfortunately, I was cut off by another sound of screams as none other than the fiery-haired Amelia Pond flew into the sopping mess besides us.

The man chuckled.

"Ah, high speed air cannon… lousy way to travel." He told her, pointing the metal rod with a blue light at the end around the area before settling on me.

Amy groaned in disgust, fingering the slop around her.

"Where are we?" She asked, obviously revolted.

"Uh, 600 feet down, 20 miles laterally puts us at the heart of the ship." He stated, still pointing the glowing blue rod in my face. I made a swipe for it and he pulled it back, looking offended. "I'd say…"

I never got to hear what he said before I felt something grab my ankle and pull me down.

I screamed, finding myself being smothered by a frantic Amy Pond.

"Wendy!" She screamed, hugging me tightly. "How the bloody hell did you get here?!"

I flinched back as the girl stared at me fiercely. She never talked to me this much before…

"I don't really know…" I muttered. "How did you-"

"Oh that's easy," The man exclaimed. "Simple time and space travel in the TARDIS."

"Simple…" I echoed, feeling a headache come on. "Wait, what's a TARDIS?"

Amy's eyes lit up.

"It's his spaceship." She smirked, jerking her head to the man. "It's disguised as a blue police box."

My attention snapped to the girl in front of me.

"Like the blue box in front of your house?"

The girl in front of me stared at me dumbly.

"How did you-"

But, the man cut her off before she could finish.

"Enough chit chat!" He yelled impatiently as we tried to get to our feet. A large groan sounded across the cave-like enclosure we were in. The man spun to us, trying to look serious.

"Now I know where we are, and this isn't a cave."

"It's a what, then?" Amy asked, trying to balance on the squishy floor. He grabbed her hands, eyes flickering between both of our faces.

"The next word is kind of the scary word. You probably want to take a moment. Get yourself in a calm place. Go ohmmmmmm."

The man continued and Amy joined him. I stared blankly ahead.

"It's a…" he looked at my blank face briefly, "tongue."

Amy stared at him blankly.

"A tongue?" She said.

"A tongue!" The man repeated cheerfully. "A great big tongue!"

"This is a mouth…" Amy breathed, turning around. "This whole place is a mouth…"

My eyes widened in understanding. I knew exactly where we were; the Star Whale's mouth. I flinched in pain at the sound of the creature's name.

"We're in a mouth!" She exclaimed while the man agreed.

"But on the plus side, it's roomy." He supplied, eyeing my still blank face again.

I gazed back at him. We were in a mouth for crying out loud! Why waste time looking at me?

And then it hit me. He was waiting for me to freak out… because we were in…

"A mouth…" I breathed. "It's going to eat us, isn't it?"

The doctor smiled brightly and ignored my question.

"How do we get out?" Amy cried, panicking.

"How big is this beasty? It's gorgeous." The man ignored her, looking around in awe while waving his metal stick around. "Blimey, if this is just its mouth, I'd love to see the stomach."

Another groan sounded around us.

"Though not right now." He stated instantly, eyeing the entryway to its throat.

Amy stepped forward.

"Doctor," She started, "How do we get out?"

I watched the man warily. This guy was a Doctor?

"Okay," the Doctor spun around, analyzing his surroundings, "it's being fed by surgically implanted feeding tubes. So, the normal entrance is…"

The Doctor, of some sort, pointed the metal stick forward, tip buzzing with a blue light. I turned to face the same and felt my stomach drop.

"…closed for business" he finished wearily.

"We can try though!" Amy tried, stepping forward. Instantly, the ground began to shake.

"No, no, stop! Don't move!" He warned as the shaking began. "Too late, it's started."

"What!" Amy cried as I fell to the ground.

"The swallow reflex!" he cried, falling on top of me again.

He rolled over and pointed the metal rod towards the throat area.

"What are you doing?!" Amy cried.

"I'm breaking the chemoreceptors!"

Amy struggled to get back up.

"The what?!"

"The eject button!" He called.

I felt my face pale.

He couldn't mean…

"How does this place haven an eject button?!"

"Think about it!" The Doctor cried.

He did.

We finally made it up just in time to see the sick traveling our way.

"Oh Ghandi…" I muttered.

"Right then!" The Doctor yelled, straightening his bow tie. "This isn't going to be big on dignity."

I stared ahead, horrified.

"By the way." He called to me, trying not to smile at the horrified look on my face. "I'm the Doctor."

I yelled back the first thing that came to my mind.

"Doctor who?"

The Doctor broke into a smile, glancing at Amy and then facing the oncoming wave of sick.

"GERONIMO!" He yelled as Amy and I screamed, before being knocked off our feet by the oncoming whale vomit.

…...

I sat up, spitting the vile liquid from my mouth. The putrid air began to choke me as I gasped for breath.

The smell was so vile!

The Doctor grabbed my upper arm, yanking me to the feet.

"Are you okay?" He asked me.

I barely managed a nod.

The Doctor continued to walk to the door, dragging me along while yelling "Come along, Pond." to the spluttering Amy.

"There's nothing broken." He called back to her, letting go of my arm. "There's no sign of a concussion. "And yes, you're covered in sick."

"Where are we?" She gasped as I walked over to help her up.

"Overspill pipe, as a guess." He replied, analyzing a control panel.

Amy grabbed my hand and pulled herself up.

"Thank you." She muttered to me before, sniffing herself.

We both cringed at the smell that filled our nostrils.

"How do we get out?"

The Doctor spun around, looking annoyed.

"One door, one door switch." He said shortly, pointing to the 'forget' button. "One condition, we forget everything we saw. Look familiar?"

The Doctor eyed me.

"Yes," I muttered. "But obviously I didn't touch it."

"Exactly, so what did it show you?"

However, before I could reply, the lights came on. The three of us spun around, seeing the creepy statues. The Doctor began to walk forward.

"There's a creature living at the heart of this ship. What's it doing here?" He called to the statue. It turned around, showing an angry face.

"Doctor…" I mumbled quietly.

He didn't hear me.

"No, that's not going to work on me." He stated. "So come on! Big old beast below deck and everyone who protests gets shoved down its throat. Is that how it works?"

The head spun again, looking almost demonic. There was something wrong about this.

"Stop it." He said, exasperated. "I'm not leaving and I'm not forgetting. And what are you fella's going to do about it? Stick out your tongues? Huh!"

The statues stepped out of their booths. Immediately, I staggered back, the Doctor and Amy copying my movements. He had to ask that… didn't he?

"Doctor…" Amy breathed, eyes wide.

I continued to step back , only to see someone brush past me, gun aloft.

The woman, with a wild mane of curly black hair, shot them down without mercy before holstering her gun.

"Look who it is." The Doctor said a bit plainly. "You look a lot better without your mask."

I managed to look at him curiously, despite being down-right terrified.

Was he really flirting at a time like this?

"You must be Amy." The woman said, walking up to the drenched ginger. She stopped though when she spotted me. "But, I don't know you."

"I'm Wendy." I muttered quietly. "I just happen to be tagging along."

The woman smiled for a moment but held out her hand to Amy.

"Liz, Liz 10."

…...

"Doctor, where are we?" Amy asked, clearly shaken.

"The lowest point in the Starship UK," the Doctor replied, "the dungeons."

I stepped back, eyes flickering towards the pulsing laser beside us. My head throbbed, looking at it. Flashes of the presentation reappeared, making me cringe.

"Ma'am?"

I turned my head to see a man in robes approaching Liz 10, or Elizabeth X, the Queen. Her eyes widened.

"Hawthorne…" she stated, quickly narrowing her eyes, "so this is where you hide yourself away."

The elder man bowed.

"You've got some explaining to do." She threatened, walking straight up to him.

The Doctor brilliantly chose to interrupt.

"There are children down here. What's that about?" He asked seriously, patting one of the mindless younglings on their head.

Hawthorne turned to him, face emotionless.

"Protesters and citizens of limited value are fed to the beast." He stated emotionlessly. For some reason, it won't eat the children."

Something in my mind told me this was important.

The whale refused to eat children.

I turned to the laser watching as it zapped apart of the Star Whale's brain. My stomach churned. This is what it meant in the movie when they mentioned the acceleration pedal. Tears began to well up in my eyes as another headache surfaced.

"Except, it's not a torture chamber is it?" The Doctor talked, sarcasm mixing with is words. "Well except it is, except it isn't. It depends on your angle."

The others approached the spot where I was. I hung my head, freshly-cleaned hair covering my splotchy face as the tears fell one by one. I couldn't help it. The creature was being tortured and I was just standing there.

"What's that?" Liz 10 asked quietly, staring at the exposed part of the Star Whale's brain.

"Well, like I say, it depends on the angle." The Doctor stated seriously. "It's either the exposed pain center of the big fella's brain being tortured relentlessly…"

"Or?"

"Or it's the gas pedal, the accelerator. Starship UK's go faster button."

"But, I don't understand." Liz 10 commented, disturbed.

"Don't you?" He questioned quietly. "Try it; the spaceship that could never fly, no vibration on deck. This creature; this poor, trapped, terrified creature, it's not infesting you. It's not invading! This is what you have instead of an engine. And this place down here is where you hurt it, where you torture it day after day just to keep it moving."

My hands clenched on the railing. I could still see the images in my head from the presentation. The poor Star Whale…

"Tell you what," the Doctor began, "normally it's above the range of human hearing."

I turned to see him release on of the tentacles.

"This is the sound none of you wanted to hear."

And with that, he pulled his metal rod, or what he called a sonic screwdriver, out to the tentacle, buzzing away and releasing a scream of pure pain.

I dropped to the ground, the moment the scream caught my attention. Its pain… the images… they ran through my head faster and faster.

"Stop it…" I whispered thickly, rocking back and forth, "please stop it…"

The Doctor stopped the screaming and looked at me on the ground. It looked as if he was doing a difficult math problem, but his eyes widened in realization before they rapidly hardened.

I flinched at his gaze, but turned to stare at the exposed brain as Liz 10 turned to Hawthorne.

"No family…" I whispered, inaudible to those around me. "No one there… and then this…"

I struggled to my feet, leaning on railing. A voice recording played in the background, coming from the group of people. I hesitantly made my way to them.

"_If you are watching this, if I am watching this, then I found my way to the tower of London."_

I stepped near Amy, seeing a video of Liz 10 playing on the monitor before them.

"_The creature you are looking at is called a Star Whale. Once there will millions of them. They lived in the depths of space and according to legend, guided the early space travelers through the asteroid belts." _

I spotted the 'forget' and 'abdicate' button in front of Liz. I realized that the release of this creature would have to be her choice.

"_This one, as far as we are aware, is the last of its kind. And what we have done to it breaks my heart."_

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the Doctor looking down for a moment in sadness. But, when he looked up, he resolutely refused to look at me.

"_The earth was burning. Our sun had turned on us and every other nation had fled to the skies. Our children screamed as the skies grew hotter. And then, it came, like a miracle, the last of the Star Whales." _

I backed up to the wall as another series of pains stabbed at my head. Mind racing, I sank to the floor while the recording continued.

"_We trapped it. We built our ship around it. And we rode on its back to safety. If you wish our voyage to continue, then you must choose the 'forget' button. Be again, the heart of this nation, untainted. If not, press the other button. Your reign will end, the Star Whale will be released, and our ship will disintegrate. I hope I keep the strength to make the right decision."_

The recording ended, leaving only silence.

"Who would vote to forget this?" Amy finally asked, sounding heart-broken.

"Millions of people who want to keep themselves safe. They have families… children." He replied darkly. "But those who protest are dead before they can even do anything."

He spun around, looking me dead-straight in the eye.

"Why?" He hissed, looking at my huddled figure. "You knew this all along didn't you? You knew what was happening and you said nothing?!"

I froze, staring at my knees. The Doctor stepped forward, towering over me. "You could have told us sooner! This is something we needed to know!"

I turned my frightened gaze upwards and stared him in the eyes, flinching at the intensity of his gaze.

My head began to sting as I tried to form sentences. I had to explain it someway…

"How was I supposed to?" I murmured, looking back to my knees.

"How do you explain something that horrible to someone, so horrible that it physically hurts to even think about?" I whispered softly. "I know why they all forget. It hurts so much to know that there is a creature beneath you suffering."

I closed my eyes, remembering the horrid screams from the whale.

"You can't hear the screams, but no matter how hard you try to block it out, you know they're there."

I opened my eyes, peeking up through my lashes at the Doctor's grim face.

"That's why they choose to forget… and that's why I stayed silent. Every time I think of the poor whale, the last of its kind, I can hear the screaming." My voice broke. "And it hurts…"

The Doctor sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and furrowing his brows.

"Even if it hurts," he muttered down to me warily, "that was only thinking of yourself."

The Doctor spun and marched away, heading to the console and immediately began to fiddle with the controls.

"What are you doing?" Amy whispered hoarsely.

He looked up at her sadly.

"The worst thing I'll ever do." He stated gravely. "I'm going to pass a massive, electrical charge through the Star Whale's brain."

I pushed myself off the floor, staring at the man in shock.

That would be like killing it.

"It'll leave it to vegetable. The ship will still fly, but the whale won't feel it."

He sent me another glare before returning to his controls.

…...

I sat next to Mandy, who was leaning against the wall as the others hurried around. Liz stood there and watched the Doctor, knowing that it was the best choice.

"Are they you're friends?" She asked quietly staring off at the tarrying group.

I sighed, leaning my head back against the cold, hard wall.

"Not really." I mumbled, remembering what had only been hours earlier for me. "I'm just someone they spotted along the way back home. I'm just another face."

"It doesn't seem that way." She observed. "That girl, she was worried when you got taken and the man was friendly to you, up till a few seconds ago, that is…"

My heart sank. Maybe they were then, but not now. Even though Amy didn't appear to dislike me, it was clear that she and the Doctor were close. And with the Doctor's feelings of me now… I turned my head to explain this to Mandy, but she was gone.

"Timmy!" She yelled running up to the red-haired boy. "You made it! You're okay!"

The boy stared ahead of himself despondently.

Mandy's face fell.

"It's me, Mandy." She tried, but the boy remained motionless.

A tentacle shot up behind the little brunette and I stared at her in shock as its stinger approached her from behind. I was about to scream out for her to run when something amazing happened.

It tapped her on the shoulder.

The Star Whale didn't want to hurt her.

It didn't want to hurt any children.

When Mandy turned to pet it, everything clicked. I knew why it came here and I knew one thing for sure.

It would never leave us to die.

I never remembered getting up and running across the room, grabbing Liz 10 by the wrist. I looked back to Amy, who witnessed the whole thing as well. Her eyes lightened with recognition.

"Do it!" She yelled and then faced the Doctor. "Doctor stop! Whatever you're doing, stop it now!"

I dragged the Queen with me to the table only muttering a soft apology.

"Sorry your majesty, but I need to borrow your hand."

The Doctor, noticing what I was doing, instantly ran towards us.

"Wendy, no!" He screamed. "NO!"

But he was too late as a buzz filled the air. The Doctor looked at the 'abdicate' button with horror.

The room immediately jerked as objects flew of the tables and bookshelves crashing to the ground. I released Liz's hand, trying to keep my footing.

"Wendy, what have you done?" He asked, no longer angry, but looking rather frightened.

"Nothing at all." I muttered looking around the room. It was just like I thought. Amy beamed at me from across the room.

My head was still throbbing. I backed up against the nearest throb, rubbing my temples.

"We've increased speed!" Hawthorne exclaimed, looking back at Liz 10 in utter amazement.

I smiled wearily from my spot in the shadows, knowing that Amy could take it from there. Silently, I slipped through the exit, unaware of the dark eyes following my every move.

…...

I sat in front of a wall of windows, eyes flickering from star to star. They were beautiful, each one of them.

I only wished I could have enjoyed it. But the constant screaming was making it impossible.

Slowly, I drew my knees closer, curling into an upright ball. Tears pricked my eyes and hands covered my ears as if it would block the Star Whale's screams pulsating in my brain. Its suffering replayed in front of me over and over. But no matter how tight I squeezed my eyes shut, the images were still there.

Why was this still happening?

I flinched when I felt something touch my shoulder, causing my eyes to fly open. The Doctor knelt in front of me with an unreadable expression on his face. He gradually reached for my hands, gently prying them off my ears. I felt the tears spill down my cheeks as the screaming became louder.

"Stop it…" I begged him grabbing my head again. "Please stop it…"

The Doctor pulled my hands away again, holding onto my wrists. Concern flickered in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" He questioned.

"It's hurting…" I whispered. "I saved it… so why does it still hurt?"

"What hurts?" The Doctor asked seriously, wiping the tears away with his thumb.

"My head…" I cried silently. "I can still hear the screaming."

The Doctor looked into my eyes as the pressure increased. A strange sort of resolve grew on his face as more and more tears fell. He leaned forward, placing his cool forehead against mine. I would have thought it strange had I not been in near-hysterics.

Suddenly, all the images I had seen in the presentation raced through my head, each one like a stinging blow. But strangely, I knew I wasn't seeing this alone. The Doctor pulled away when I began to shake. My eyes fluttered open and I looked up to see his worried face.

"Oh no, no, no, no, no…" He muttered, just as Amy walked in, carrying Liz 10's mask.

"Doctor, what's going on?" She yelled as I heard a muffle thud. "What's happened to her?"

I looked up and realized I had fallen over. My eyes travelled to the ginger above me. A sharp pain travelled across my body, causing me to jerk. Another thud sounded as a wet sensation travelled across my scalp. It was then that I noticed I was convulsing.

"We need help!" Amy cried, "I'll go-"

But the Doctor cut her off.

"No." He said firmly, cradling me against his chest before standing up, holding me tightly. "We need to get her to the TARDIS now."

For a moment, I wondered if he was still mad at me. I honestly didn't think to tell him about the Star Whale. I assumed he knew, as he was sent down the pipe. It was stupid of me to presume such.

The pain stopped within moments along with the shaking. But, my body felt heavy and thoughts were growing harder to articulate.

"Doctor…" I whispered into his tweed jacket. "What's happening to me?"

He remained silent, focusing on the route ahead of him.

"I'm dying, aren't I?" I whispered, already knowing. I tried to move my arms and legs, but nothing happened. Even talking was becoming harder.

"Explains why I feel so tired." I mumbled.

The Doctor jerked me.

"No! Do not do that!" He snapped. "I need you to stay awake right now!"

I turned my head and looked at him sadly.

"I'm sorry…" I mumbled. "For not telling you… I was being stupid."

The Doctor leaned his head down to my ear, still sprinting.

"No…" he stated gruffly, "I'm the one who lost my temper. It didn't even matter if you told me or not. I would still have to face the same choice."

I tried to smile, but nothing happened.

"Doctor!" Amy called, right behind the man. "The TARDIS!"

The Doctor screeched to a stop, immediately turning into the box from before.

"It's the same box…" I muttered, taking in the drastic change of scenery as he sped through the doorway. "But, bigger on the inside…"

A small smile flickered on his face before he comprehended all of what I had just said.

"What do you mean it's the same?" He asked, confused as he turned into a bright room.

"It's just like the box that brought me here…" I slurred, vision blurring.

"Brought you here?" The Doctor exclaimed.

I sighed feeling my eyelids droop.

"So tired…" I breathed, feeling the pain come again. My body started to shiver.

"No! Stop that!" He told me, panicky as he set me down on some sort of soft surface.

I spotted the blurry shape of the doctor leaning over me. A bright blue light flashed over my face.

"Doctor…" I groaned. "What's happening to me?"

"Originally, I thought that there were only two safe-guards to protect the button. You get the information telepathically and either choose to forget or be fed to the Star Whale." He rambled rapidly, fiddling with his sonic screwdriver. "However, I failed to recognize the third way that ensured that no one would escape with the information. They literally stuff your head with information. Usually that's fine, but only for a short message. A large scale message would be disastrous. They basically filled you're brain past its capacity so that on the off chance you escape from the Star Whale, you won't last as long to tell your tale. So, as of now, your brain is literally being crushed from the inside out. Any questions?"

"Yeah…" I muttered. "What are you going to do to help me?"

The blurry Doctor backed away from me, pointing his sonic screwdriver in my direction.

"This." He said simply, turning it on.

I stared dumbly at the light for a moment until a strange sensation filled my body. The images disappeared one by one, disappearing into the black oblivion of my mind.

"Doctor?" I whispered when the edges of my vision started to turn black. "What's going on?"

The Doctor was silent for a moment.

"You're going to sleep." He murmured. "But, don't worry. You'll be alright."

His reassurance did nothing to assuage my fears as my consciousness began to fade and I was thrust into darkness.

* * *

**Well, I hope you like the newest chapter! It is amazing how I've been able to keep updating each day... please do not expect this. I have to study for a midterm tomorrow. So, there will be no time to write. **

**Thanks so much for reading and feel free to review!**

**Lots of Love,**

**Marietta**

P.S. This is probably the largest chapter I have ever written. :)


	4. The Tale of Wendy Darling

**I apologize for the interruption, but I do not own the Doctor Who universe... only Wendy...**

* * *

Amy Pond sped into the TARDIS infirmary, chest heaving and fiery, red hair in disarray from the long run. Her head whipped back and forth to each hospital bed, spotting the unconscious brunette and the very silent Doctor standing by her side. Amy's heart stopped.

She hesitantly stepped forward, placing her hand on the Doctor's shoulder.

"Is she…" She whispered, unable to finish the horrid thought.

The Doctor shook his head.

"No." He stated emotionlessly, brushing away a stray piece of her dull, brown hair from her peaceful face. "She's just recovering."

Amy let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness…" she breathed, thankful that the girl wasn't dead. "What was wrong with her?"

The Doctor stared grimly ahead, watching the American girl as if she was going to disappear at any moment.

"It's a simple case of her being overloaded with too much information." He specified simply. "It was all fixed by erasing the said information."

One of Amy's eyebrows quirked up as she smiled mischievously.

"If it's so simple," she quipped, "why are you so worried?"

The Doctor sighed, face downcast, and they both stood in silence. Amy kept quiet, staring resolutely at his weary face. There was no way he was getting out of answering this question.

The Doctor relented after nearly ten minutes of quiet.

"It's upsetting…" He murmured, ashamed. "That I missed the signs."

Amy looked at the Time Lord curiously.

"When a person is suffering from information overload, there are certain signs. Pupil dilation, headaches, it all was right there in front of me."

Amy's eyes softened.

"But when I did recognize the signs, I brushed them off as guilt because I was so angry at her."

The ginger sighed, pulling the distraught alien into a hug. It was obvious that he was off blaming himself for something he couldn't have helped.

"It was an accident." She mumbled. "And she's perfectly fine now."

The Doctor relaxed at her words, circling his arms around the once-little girl from Leadworth. Amy hugged him back eagerly when a thought struck her.

Wait." she said suspiciously, pulling back. "Will she remember any of this?"

The Doctor smiled slightly.

"Of course!" He supplied. "I only erased the information forced onto her by the presentation. Everything else, though, is still intact."

Amy noticed something in his face as he continued to talk. It was a happy, excited look, filled with curiosity and fondness.

"She was brilliant, by the way, much better than I expected her to be." He stated all of a sudden. "I had my reservations, seeing as she's quiet and all, but…"

Amy's eyes widened at the familiar look that spread across his face as he continued to prattle on. A smile twitched on her mouth.

He was going to ask her to stay.

The Doctor however failed to notice Amy's expression as he sat down on a chair, swiveling to face the ginger.

"So… " He started spinning once in the rolling chair. "Tell me what you know about this girl."

Amy rolled her eyes.

"That girl," she emphasized, "is named Wendy Darling. She was visiting Leadworth with her grandmother… sort of, when you came back."

"Sort of?" The Doctor asked.

"Well…" Amy thought for a moment. "Her grandmother wasn't there when she arrived. I think she was on an extended vacation. In fact, the old woman didn't return home until a week after the Atraxi incident."

The Doctor stared intently at the ginger, urging her to continue. Amy shifted her gaze down at her feet.

"Wendy wasn't as popular in the village." She sighed. "She had just arrived from America and was very quiet. She never showed her emotions, but I knew that they were there. Others wrote her off as depressed and I could understand why. Underneath all the blank faces she wore each day, I could see the sadness. Rory thought…"

Amy drifted off, thinking of her fiancé she had left behind. Guilt bubbled at the bottom of her stomach.

"Yes, Rory thought what?" The Doctor asked rather impatiently.

Amy shook her head and dove back into the conversation.

"Rory thought that she was mourning." She explained. "He thought that she had recently lost someone close to her. We never found out though that she had lost. I could have been a bad breakup for all we knew."

The Doctor furrowed his eyebrows.

"Were the three of you close?" He asked, slightly confused.

Amy shifted uncomfortably.

"Rory and I barely talked to her." She stated uncomfortably, suddenly finding her hands interesting. "I would just pass her on the street and the only reason Rory knew of her was because he was her nurse in the hospital."

"What happened to her?" He asked, swiveling his chair to face Wendy's bed.

"Someone had called the ambulance, claiming that she looked suicidal."

The Doctor's eyes widened.

"Which she wasn't!" Amy added hastily upon seeing the Doctor's face. "People tend to misunderstand her."

The Doctor still looked confused.

"Then why were you so happy to see her?" He asked quietly. "You told me earlier that she was supposed to be dead."

The ginger sighed.

"Wendy went missing the day you came back, Doctor." She said softly to the Time Lord. "No one had seen her or heard for her, we all thought she had committed suicide. Well, everyone except Rory… but that's beside the point."

The Doctor stiffened and continued to gaze at her with an unreadable expression.

"Tonight was the first night I had seen her in two years. I always wished that I'd talk to her." She murmured. "After all, I know better than anyone else what it's like being the village outcast."

The infirmary fell into silence. The Doctor stared at the unconscious girl beside him, disgruntled. The longer he spent gazing, the deeper his frown became.

"Did you say missing for two years?" He asked in a low voice.

"Yup." Amy replied, popping the 'p' sound in the word as she stood up. "I'm going to take another shower. I still feel disgusting from all that whale sick.

The Doctor continued to stare at Wendy, not even sparing Amy a quick glance as she exited the room.

"Two years…" He breathed. "Blimey… I have to get you home."

…...

"All right!" The Doctor exclaimed readily, straightening his bow tie. "Now, back to Leadworth for you!"

He shot me a cheeky smile as he sprinted around the room, flipping an array of switches and levers. The floor beneath me shook, causing my arms to latch onto the railing. Amusement bubbled at the pit of my stomach and for the first time, the corners of my mouth twitched.

He was so… odd, sometimes.

The Doctor, reaching for another lever in my direction, turned to face me.

"I have to get you back to your family before they get worried;" he explained, "especially your mum."

My face drew blank again as my heart dropped.

"My family?" I breathed, gazing at the man before me with an incredulous look.

"Yes, you're family!" He called out, still running around the console. "I've learned from experience that keeping young women from their families tend to get you slapped; very hard I might add."

He rubbed his cheek, as if it still hurt. But, I ignored him. My thoughts were other places as I realized that I was laughing.

The adventure of the Starship UK opened my eyes. Returning to a dull place like Leadworth would be near impossible, not with its monotonous colors and gloomy demeanor. My little sister's face flashed into my mind.

When the light in the box, or the TARDIS- as the Doctor refers to it- pulled me in, I heard her voice. I thought it mad at the time, but she kept on repeating the same phrase over and over. It was so familiar. Even when I lost myself into my dreams, the same message managed to lace its way into the situation.

Wake up.

A small smile graced my face. This adventure shook me from that stupor. All because of I found that strange, blue box…

I remembered what the Doctor had spoken about when I awoke in the medical bay. He explained to me that I stumbled onto the TARDIS when she was in the midst of rebuilding. Apparently, that involved something called the time vortex which accidentally sent me into the future. Although, he wasn't sure why it opened for me when he wasn't able to enter previously.

Maybe the TARDIS just liked me.

I glanced at the harried alien as he flitted from one control to the other, bringing me back to the problem at hand.

Should I go home?

I ran away to Leadworth for a reason, but now, running seemed ridiculous.

The TARDIS finally stopped its quaking and the Doctor zeroed in on my now-serious face.

"What's wrong?" He asked, staring intently.

I cleared my throat nervously and leaned against the railing.

"Have you ever…" I managed, trying to put my thoughts together, "ran away from something because it hurt too much to be there?"

The Doctor nodded.

"I'm always running," He muttered, turning to the screen which displayed the date and time. "I never stop."

I watched him hesitantly, waiting for him to continue.

"But I guess we have to stop at one point."

I sighed and glanced at the doors.

"Then I need you to take me home." I mumbled, catching the confused look that spread across his face. "To America…"

The Doctor's face brightened as I relayed him my address,

"Right then…" He exclaimed happily, "America!"

I shot him another smile, finding it easier to do this time. Maybe it was my being released from that gloom that did it. But, I had a feeling it had more to do with the goofy alien running around the console again.

Moments later, the TARDIS stilled.

I hesitantly walked to the doorway, pushing open the door and glancing outside.

"Well," I muttered. "This is it."

The Doctor's smile faltered. He looked a bit conflicted as I turned to leave.

"Wendy!"

I halted at the sound of my name.

The Doctor fidgeted with the ends of his sleeves, looking at me intently. It appeared as if he wanted to say something, but immediately changed his mind.

"You don't have to stop running forever." He stated. "That'd be quite boring if you ask me."

I mustered up my biggest smile before stepping out of the box. The Doctor blinked rapidly.

"Wonderful," I called, backing through the doorway with each step. "I love a good run every now and then."

The doors swung shut behind me as I stepped away from the TARDIS. My heart dropped as it immediately began to dematerialize, leaving me in the familiar town of West-ridge, California.

I wanted to go with them.

I shook my head, trying to rid myself of the petty thought as I glanced around at the town that I left behind.

The clear blue sky brought a smile to my face as the sun warmed my skin. Children's laughter filled the street. I glanced to my right and spotted them playing kickball down the road. It seemed so peaceful, so happy.

A breeze blew my bangs out of my face as I slowly turned around. My entire body tensed at the sight of the cream-colored house.

It was time.

Hesitantly I stepped forward, reaching for the door knob. Memories flashed through my head, turning my steady breath into shuddering breaths.

I could do this.

My hand slowly reached for the doorknob while tears welled up in my eyes.

I was home.

…...

Amy Pond skipped into the control room, contently patting her full stomach. She immediately noticed the Time Lord flitting from one control to the other, humming contentedly.

Amy's eyebrows rose as she vaulted into one of the chairs.

"Why so happy?" She asked curiously.

The Doctor spun around, grinning mischievously.

"Oh nothing…." He smiled. "Wendy just has a brilliant smile. That's all."

Amy gaped at the bow-tie wearing alien.

She had never seen Wendy smile; not once.

"How?" She demanded crossing her arms.

The Doctor laughed while fumbling with a lever.

"I'm the Doctor!" He exclaimed. "Making people smile is effortless."

Amy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She feared that the Time Lord's ego had just dramatically inflated.

"Yeah? Well where is she?" She countered. "I want proof."

The Doctor's smile immediately faltered. And he turned to pull another lever.

"I dropped her off." He mumbled.

Amy froze.

"Sorry…" She said sweetly. "Can you repeat that?"

The Doctor sighed.

"I dropped her off back home."

The control rooms was dangerously quiet.

"Amy?" The Doctor muttered peering over his shoulder, just in time to see the manic ginger launching herself at him.

"Oi!" He yelled, rubbing the spot she just punched. "What was that for?!"

Amy glared at him.

"I thought you were going to ask her to stay!" She yelled indignantly.

The Doctor spluttered.

"She's been missing for two years!"

Amy stared at him incredulously.

"We're in a time machine." She stated, pronouncing the statement as if she was talking to a five-year-old.

The Doctor huffed.

"I know that!" He cried. "But whenever I put off bringing them back, I always get something wrong. And then I get slapped!"

Amy's eyes narrowed as she smiled sweetly.

"No." She stated simply.

The Doctor looked confused.

"No?" He asked.

"Come on, Raggedy Man." She urged, pushing him back to the controls. "Let's go get her."

The Time Lord shot her a glare.

"Amy." He warned.

The Ginger rolled her eyes.

"No!" She grumbled. "That was the happiest I've ever seen Wendy and you _made her smile._ She never smiles!"

The Doctor still looked conflicted.

"I know you wanted to bring her." She yelled, poking him in the chest. "So get your butt to America and pick her up!"

The Doctor backed up from Amy who had turned to give him one of her deadly glowers. He stood there for a moment until he let out a heaving sigh and running around the console.

A large smile broke out on Amy's face as the Doctor began to murmur incoherently about stubborn Scottish gingers.

Amy only laughed and sat back in her chair.

She knew what she saw and she bloody well wasn't going to let the Doctor leave another girl waiting.

…...

June 25, 2014

Darren Evans leaned back into his rocking chair, letting out a sigh of relief as the gentle summer wind fanned his face. It was another normal day for him: wake up, do some yard work, and relax. The man, having aged 64 had lived this life for a while and had seen everything from the horrors of war to the ecstasy of a child's laugh. In fact, he didn't think that anything could surprise him anymore.

So, when he watched a blue police box materialize in front of his next door neighbor's house, Darren Evans had to wonder if his old age was finally getting to him.

The elderly man was further stunned when a pretty ginger girl and a tall, lanky man in a tweed jacket strode out of the said box, only to stop at the front door. His eyes widened as the man knocked. Didn't they know?

No one lived in the Darling house.

The strange pair continued to pound on the door, waiting for someone to answer.

But, no one would.

The tweed jacket-man began to grow impatient and worried, from what Mr. Evans observed. He pulled out a metal stick and aimed it at the door.

The ginger smacked his arm.

They were whispering, so Mr. Evans was unable to hear it. He didn't think much of the two until the ginger looked over at him, pointing out to her friend that there was another person there. Mr. Evans was confused at this point as the man groaned loudly about something called the "domestic approach."

But, the ginger girl paid him no heed as she immediately spun around, walking towards the confused Mr. Evans.

"Hello!" She said brightly as her companion shuffled up next to her. "I'm Amy and this is the Doctor."

"Doctor who?" He asked as the man broke out into a smile.

The girl ignored the pair of men.

"We're looking for our friend." She stated seriously. "Wendy Darling."

Mr. Evans paled.

"Wendy Darling?" He asked quietly.

The pair nodded.

Mr. Evans eyed the pair suspiciously.

"How did you know her?"

The Doctor smiled and opened his mouth to speak, but Amy cut him off.

"We met her in Leadworth, where she was staying." She said sweetly. "We thought that that was her house over there."

She pointed the house next door.

Mr. Evans sighed and pushed himself to his feet, hobbling to the door.

"The pair of you should come with me." He called back, not seeing their apprehensive faces.

"Why?" The Doctor asked quickly.

Mr. Evans turned back to face the man sadly.

"Because Wendy Darling has been dead for years now."

…..

Mr. Evans sat on his armchair, facing the pair across from him. Amy appeared to be stricken while the Doctor's face was blank, eyes pained.

"What did you mean when you said she was dead?" The Doctor questioned.

The elderly man ignored him.

"What do you know about Miss Darling's life before she left for the UK?"

The duo remained silent.

"Well, then." He muttered. "I'll have to start from the beginning."

Amy and the Doctor's backs straightened as the man began his story.

"_The Darlings had always been a successful family, the pride of our small town. The parents, Eddie and Sharon were kind and intelligent surgeons in the hospital. They had two daughters, Wendy and Abigail. The girls were full of life, like everyone's own personal suns. " _

Amy's eyes widened at the description while the Doctor stared intently at the man in front of him.

"_Even though the Darling girls were five years apart, they were inseparable. The eldest daughter, Wendy, simply adored her. But one year, young little Abigail contracted a bad case of leukemia. She died the following year at the age of eleven."_

The pair stiffened.

"_The family was devastated. Smiles weren't as common in the early days. No one could forget the bright smiling girl who'd skip along the sidewalks singing at the tops of her lungs. But a year later, things returned to normal; that is, except for Wendy."_

Mr. Evans sighed before continuing.

"_The girl no longer shined. You can see her smiling, but the true emotions were always underneath: the sadness, the bitterness. But, after a while, she began to soften. A year and a half later, she finally began to regain her glow. Although, it was never the same. My wife, Marta and I were nearly scared to death when we saw her then. The girl was all smiles, just like the old Wendy. We only wished it lasted…"_

Mr. Evans glanced up at the pair, noting that their faces fell.

"_The next month, her parents got into a car accident. We tried to calm Wendy, but the news had already reached her. Her parents were dead."_

Mr. Evan got a faraway look in his eyes as he remembered her in those days. She was so cold, so lost. He doubted that the girl would smile again; not for a long time at least.

"_I don't believe she ever spoke. Not even at the funeral. She just smiled one last smile to her parents' tombstone and walked off. Her parents always said she had a pretty smile. So, she gave her last one to them. We all watched her with tears in her eyes. They had buried the parents right next to little Abigail. It almost seemed to serve as a reminder to her that she was the last of her family, the last Darling."_

The Doctor twitched when hearing Wendy referred to as the 'last' of her family. But, Mr. Evans paid it no mind.

"_Marta was worried about the girl. She'd walk over to her house each day and find her sitting in the backyard, staring at nothing. It took moments to make her realize that there was another person with her. And when she did notice, she'd politely greet them before returning to the daze."_

"She did that in Leadworth…" Amy muttered. "All the time…"

"_Every time Marta visited her, she'd bring her back inside, making sure that she had eaten. The girl almost seemed comatose. We waited for her family to come, but no one arrived to care for her. Everyone had forgotten._

_It took a few weeks for the girl to snap out of it. She told ol' Marta that she was going to find her grandmother, who was living in Europe. We were the ones that helped Wendy get there. We helped her pack, planned out the trip, and even drove her to the airport. Marta reckoned that the girl needed a new start, to get away from all the memories. So we gladly helped her and watched as the poor girl left; head high, but spirits low."_

Mr. Evans raised his head and looked the two in the eyes.

"I'm guessing." He prodded. "That that's where she met the two of you."

Amy nodded wordlessly while the Doctor remained silent, staring at his shoes.

Mr. Evans sighed.

"This is where the hard part begins."

The Doctors eyes snapped to his face.

"_Wendy returned a little less than two years later-" _The Doctor winced as he realized that he arrived at the wrong time again. _"-looking near like the girl we dropped off years ago. But, there was something different. She smiled again."_

Mr. Evans smiled fondly.

"_It made Marta burst into tears at the sight of it. She ended up staying with us for a while. Poor Wendy couldn't bring herself to return to that old house. It held too many bad memories. I remember those days well. She'd just stand in front of the front door; hand on the knob, motionless. I tried to ask her why she kept on trying. She told me that she met a silly old man in Leadworth who told her that you can't let the past bog you down; you keep your eyes forward and run on. And believe me, that girl never stopped running…"_

The Doctor smiled, but it quickly fadedMr. Evans continued.

"…_until a month or so after she returned. I remember that day well, June 26, 2010."_

Amy's eyes widened.

"That's the day of…" She breathed, trailing off.

The Doctor glanced at her, confused.

"Day of what?" He asked curiously.

Amy shook her head.

"It's the day we started traveling." She said simply before urging the old man to continue.

He glumly obliged.

"_Wendy was joking and laughing with me when Marta asked her to run down to the market to grab some bread for dinner. The girl did so happily and went to walk out, yellow purse in hand. She smiled at me happily and spoke a sentence that I never thought I would hear. She finally made it. Wendy had gone inside the house. She held up her wrist to show me her mother's charm bracelet. Sharon insisted fervently that the old charm bracelet would go to Wendy when she died. It would be something to remind her of her family's love."_

Mr. Evans noticed that the ginger's eyes were glistening with unshed tears. But he made no move to comfort her.

It was time for the difficult part.

"_Before I could question her over the matter, she ran out the door, yelling out that she'd be back soon. I can't tell you how much I wished that she had stayed that day." _He muttered, staring at a picture of the young girl and her family on the mantel. _"That evening, while Wendy was out, there was an earthquake. Books fell from shelves and windows popped like confetti. Marta and I were scared. There hadn't been an earthquake like this since '89."_

Mr. Evans closed his eyes.

"_It didn't occur to us for a minute or so to what had happened to Wendy. I ran down the road trying to find her. She had grown on me, like she was my own daughter. She had to be okay, she just had to. But, it didn't take long to find out what had happened to her."_

The old man took a deep breath.

"_To get to the market, there is a bridge that has to be passed. It was large and supposed to be indestructible. But, I arrived that evening to find the whole lot had collapsed into the river. People were surrounding its remains, crying for the lost souls. I didn't bother. Wendy could still be back at the market for all I knew. But, that's when I saw it, a flash of yellow…"_

Mr. Evans faced the pair, looking at them with intense guilt.

"…_her purse. It hung from among the rubble. I looked at that and everything became instantly clear. The girl had fallen. And with that, the last Darling had died._

_And she died alone."_

Tears ran down Amy's face while the Doctor sat there, emotionlessly staring into nothing.

Mr. Evans pushed himself to his feet before hobbling over to the window.

"She's over there." He whispered, pointing to a graveyard down the road. "Now, if you excuse me, I need some rest."

The old man left the room, leaving only sound of Amy's stifled sobs.

…...

The Doctor quietly stood, gently pulling Amy up from her seat. His hand latched around her shaking wrist as he guided her out of the house, towards the graveyard.

The pair walked in silence, entering the graveyard with reverence. They wandered among the spaces for a while before they caught sight of what they were searching for.

A simple gravestone, holding the title "Wendy Darling" was nestled right next to her parents and little sister's tombstone.

Amy watched the Doctor, whose eyes began to tear up when he took heed of the dates, "January 17, 1990-June 26, 2010".

"She was only eighteen…" The Doctor muttered, looking only at the stone.

Amy almost objected that she was actually twenty, but she remembered that the Doctor had dropped her off almost two years late.

The girl had been so young.

The Doctor shied away from the grave and turned to the weeping ginger, encasing her in his arms immediately.

"Come on…" he mumbled into her fiery hair. "There's someone I think you'd might like to meet. He's an old friend of mine who became quite famous during World War Two."

Amy nodded and the two made their way to the TARDIS, never looking back.

…...

I walked up onto the bridge, trying to juggle the loaves of bread perched in my hands while shoving my wallet back into my purse. It was refreshing to do these simple chores. It gave me time to think.

The Doctor had dropped me off a little over a month ago. Whenever I was alone, my mind always flitted to the subject of him. I wondered if he and Amy were having fun travelling the universe…

A pang shot through my heart, and I brushed the envy away. I didn't regret leaving the TARDIS that day. I finally managed to overcome my fears and enter my house. The memories had rushed back full-force that day. But I was ready and I ran on.

I held up my free wrist and examined my mother's charm bracelet. It had little hearts, each holding a family member's name.

A sad smile spread across my lips.

I decided that that in the future, I'd do some travelling on my own. Marta and Darren were being so kind, but I couldn't overstay my welcome. I could get a job, buy a-

All my thoughts were cut off in an instant as the ground below me began to shake violently.

The loaves of bread tumbled to the ground as I fell to my hands and knees. People everywhere were screaming.

The world seemed to slow down as a series of ominous grinding noises filled the air. I whipped my head towards the source, causing my eyes to widen in horror as I spotted the growing cracks in the pavement.

The bridge was going to fall.

I scrambled to my feet, purse clamped in my hand, and sprinted towards solid ground as the bridge began to collapse. Large crashes resounded in my ears as car after car plummeted to the river below.

I was 60 feet away from safety.

Tears welled up in my eyes as the sounds of falling civilians' screams filled the air.

45 feet left.

I pumped my legs harder and harder. The crashing noises grew louder behind me.

20 feet left.

I wondered for a mad moment what Amy and the Doctor were doing.

15 feet left.

Safety was in my reach.

10 feet left.

I let out a cry of relief.

5 feet left.

I was going to make it.

1 foot left.

The ground fell from beneath me.

I rapidly waved my arms, trying desperately to clutch onto the air around me. I could see the fear in the bystanders' eyes as I began to fall. Why did it have to go so slow? The pavement was mere inches away from my fingertips. A scream ripped through my throat as I began to plummet to the dangerous depths below.

My horrors, however, were short-lived as my purse managed to latch onto a jutting metal bar only a foot under the bridge itself.

I let out a cry of relief.

My hands immediately clamped on to the wobbling metal bar as I struggled to keep myself calm.

I survived being eaten by an alien whale in space.

Hanging from a crumbling bridge was nothing. Or, at least that's what I told myself.

Hanging by one arm, I moved my other to grab onto the nearest piece of solid bridge still standing. The metal beam creaked ominously. I winced as I managed to get a good hold on the rock. Blood was seeping through my fingertips. I took a deep breath before letting go of the beam, which immediately fell below, my purse along with it.

A large crunch filled the air.

I watched in horror as the rock beneath my hand crumbled, leaving me to fall.

My heart thudded.

This was it.

I was going to die.

A pale hand snatched my wrist. I didn't even have time to look up until a laughing voice filled my ears.

"Hello Sweetie." The voice of a woman called. "You'll thank me for this later."

All of a sudden, a strange tingling sensation overcame me and I was enveloped in darkness.

….

I found myself sprawled out on some sort of beach. The sky was no longer a deep blue, but a gray overcast. I shivered as the cool wind licked against my skin.

What just happened?

I know that someone had caught me from my fall. But, other than that…

Nothing…

I pushed myself to my feet, seeing the sheet rock more inland. I ran to the rocky terrain, looking for something familiar.

Unfortunately it was only me and what looked like crumbling ruins not too far off.

It was just like the Star ship UK. Only this time, I had no TARDIS to send me there.

Anger built up in my system as I spun around, seeing that I was alone. The woman who saved me was no where to be found.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!" I exploded, yelling up at the sky.

The only answer back was the hard winds blowing my hair away from my face. I appreciated being saved and I definitely held no desire to die. But to find myself dumped off somewhere _again_…

I didn't even know if this was Earth.

My anger dissipated as a loud roar filled the air.

"What…" I muttered, glancing up to see a large spacecraft tumbling through the sky.

That did not look good.

I felt my face twist in horror as the aircraft came closer and closer. My body immediately backed towards the beach. I would have screamed if I could. But, I only watched breathlessly as the giant piece of metal crash into the ruins behind me with a deafening strike.

And then, before I knew it, I was flying.

* * *

**Sorry for the delay! I've had a whole bunch of homework... which I've been procrastinating. As of now, there will be weekly updates. I'd like to warn you though that I'll be away from my computer during thanksgiving break, so the next update will be pushed to next next week. **

**I just wanted to thank you for all the reviews. It truly makes me smile to check my email and see what you guys have to say. **

**Thanks so much!**

**Next time: **

**Wendy finds herself a bit over her head when she finds herself mixed in with the Doctor and Amy once again. The key to her survival? "Don't blink." **


	5. The Time of Angels: Part 1

**Marietta doesn't own Doctor Who. Marietta also dislikes it when people talk about themselves in third person. Marietta is being very hypocritical right now.**

* * *

The first thing I noticed was the buzzing in my ears.

I rolled onto my back, ignoring the sharp stabs of pain that ran up my spine. My eyes crept open spotting the destruction around me.

Chunks of metal from the starship were strewn across the ground in fiery heaps. The ship itself lied on top of the mountain, spewing smoke and other gases from the look of it. For a moment, I stared at the mess that grew blurry and blurrier by the second before letting out a groan.

I managed to get myself sent of somewhere across the galaxy; again.

My first instinct was to panic. But, sensing no immediate danger, I closed my eyes and thought back to the bridge. It had been described as indestructible, invincible. But, it fell so easily. I remembered feeling terrified to the point that I could barely think. Only the thought of running could compute. The bridge toppled, and me along with it. But, by some sort of miracle, a woman managed to catch me. This resulted in me being landed here of all places, wherever I was. I tried to focus on my savior, but I never got a look at her face. It could have been Amy for all I knew.

I chuckled sadly at the thought.

It most definitely was not Amy. Besides, the ginger girl was off exploring the galaxy. I doubted that she would be wandering around the small town of West-Ridge, California. Not when you could see distant planets and different species.

It sounded amazing compared to home.

I attempted to focus on identifying the voice, but my mind was becoming groggy. I laid there for who knows how long, mumbling out the word 'focus' over and over again. But, my limbs remained heavy.

I couldn't do it.

I slumped further into the rocky ground, body relaxing with my mind. For a moment, the grinding sound of the TARDIS whispered softly through the heavy wind. But I thought nothing of it.

I was already asleep.

….

_I strode down the sidewalk, an array of bright flowers in hand with a determined gleam in my eyes. Children played kickball as usual, screaming cries of joy while the warm early-summer wind ruffled my bangs. I brushed away the wispy strands that hung in my eyes and focused onwards. _

_This needed to be done. _

_The Doctor had dropped me off the day before. The looks on Marta and Darren's faces when I turned up on their doorstep were almost comical. It turned out to be a very interesting meeting as I noted that the Doctor had not dropped me off the day I left Leadworth. He was almost 2 years late. _

_I laughed and wondered what Amy would do if she ever found out how off he was. Probably yell or something with the likes of that. _

_The feeling of laughter no longer felt foreign on my lips. And, for some reason, I knew that the Doctor was the cause of it. _

_I could recall what the Doctor had done to help me after the Star Whale adventure. He explained it himself. I remembered the basic gist of what was forced upon me about the Star Whale, but none of the specific information was present. He had done away with it. _

_I didn't notice it until this morning that he had done more than that. _

_Marta had mentioned it in passing, my parents, that is. _

_Normally, a single mention of them would shut me down; make me lose myself in the memories. But nothing happened. I only laughed at the statement. It was funny, after all. I continued to spend most of the day wondering what had changed. Sure, I had an adventure like none others, but that shouldn't have been able to rid the dark feelings that built up over time. _

_That's when I remembered. _

_The Doctor informed me happily that he targeted the information and memories that caused me pain. I didn't realize it at the time. But he included the word 'memories.' _

_I thought back to each of the memories that would send me back to the numbness, even those of my sister. _

_They were there, but I felt nothing. No pain, just small tinges of happiness and a bit of longing. _

_The negative feelings were gone. _

_Another smile flitted onto my mouth. I didn't know if he did it purposely. But, I wished I could thank him one day. _

_Now, I could smile again. _

_I pushed open the looming, wrought-iron gate to the cemetery and walked in. My eyes flitted from one tombstone to the other. Countless names appeared before me, but none were the ones I was searching for._

_I continued to walk through the lines and lines of graves until I found the pair I wanted. Sighing, I laid my flowers in front of each grave with shaking hands. Once my hands were empty, I stood there for a moment, glancing at the setting sun. It wasn't until a crackle of leaves caught my attention that I moved again. _

_I glanced behind me, but saw nothing there. _

_I sighed and took a seat on the soft grass, facing the graves before me. _

"_Hi Mom, Dad, Abigail," I whispered softly. "I came back."_

_The wind blew through the air and knocked hair into my face. I spluttered, laughing lightly before pushing my hair back. _

"_I can laugh again." I started, closing my eyes. "It took a lot of time, but I think I can be happy again." _

_I sighed, remembering Amy and the Doctor. They were so happy and adventurous; I almost wished that I could live their life. Exploring the galaxy and reaching the stars…_

_I opened my eyes and glanced towards the pink sky. _

"_I didn't do it alone though." I stated, ignoring the tingling feeling that fluttered in my chest. "There was a man from a faraway place. Honestly, I don't even think he's from Earth. I never did get the chance to ask him that." _

_I focused my attention back to the tombstones in front of me. _

"_You would have all liked him. He was kind, quirky, and a bit adventurous. But he also saved my life."_

_I smiled up to the sky. _

"_He told me to run, and that's what I've been doing, running and never looking back. It really helps."_

_I closed my eyes, remembering the Doctor's face._

"_The crazy alien who rides through the stars in a small blue box…"_

…

My eyes fluttered open.

I found myself staring at a dark, overcast sky. My body was wracked with pain. I supposed that blast had thrown me quite a way. However, a smile flitted onto my lips as I recalled the dream. It was a good memory. I ended up spending the rest of the night talking to their graves. I told them of my life after they all died and how I was able to come back. I told them of what I had seen, of space, of the Star Whale, of the Doctor. I talked until I had fallen asleep, right there in front of their graves. The thought of it made me happy, even if I didn't remember how I ended up returning to my bed during that span of time.

I noted that there was a light off to my right. I strained my eyes to see what it exactly was. It looked to be coming from an encampment of some sort.

That was strange. I never remembered that being there.

Groaning, I pushed myself to my knees, spying over in the camp's direction. There seemed to be some people out there.

Strength filled my limbs as I realized that they could probably help me, assuming that they were friendly.

I managed to regain my footing and started to hobble to the encampment. My limbs weren't as heavy before, but still in pain. I could feel where my legs had been cut up between the fall and aircraft crash. My hands tightened at the thought of the bridge, causing me to gasp out in pain. I forgot that they were injured as well from the fall. But, my mind focused on other things.

Were Darren and Marta alright?

Did they-

I cut off that thought and trudged on forward. Now was not the time to worry.

It took minutes to reach the encampment boundaries.

I glanced around, noting the figures in military uniforms. They were all scattered about, moving equipment. It looked as if they were planting explosives.

I moved to the shadows, continuing to spy on their work. For a moment, after seeing the combination of military uniforms and explosives, I feared that I had walked straight into a warzone. But, the idea became ridiculous as I noticed that there were only a few soldiers.

I edged closer, trying to hear what they were saying. But, before I could make out a word, a hand clamped down onto my shoulder.

"What do we have here?"

I jumped away with a gasp and spun around.

A woman with curly hair pulled back, wearing a uniform of her own stood in front of me, face twisted in a shocked expression. I noted with an alarmed expression the gun held lightly in her hand.

The weapon didn't bode well with me.

"Wendy?" She breathed, reaching out grab my shoulder.

But I was already running.

Panic flooded my system as I sprinted across the camp. I didn't know what I was thinking, trying to peep in on a military group.

"Idiot!" I muttered, ignoring the woman's cries for attention behind me.

I snuck a glance over my shoulder and spotted the woman staring after me in shock. I ducked my head and sped around a corner…

…only to ram straight into another person.

We fell to the ground in a heap. I rolled onto my back with a groan, wrenching open my eyes. I laid there for a moment and close my eyes, then opened them again.

That wasn't right…

It was the TARDIS.

I bolted into a sitting position; looking over to the person I had knocked down with me.

A ginger girl gawked at me with wide eyes.

"Wendy?" She whispered incredulously.

I nodded, unable to speak. If she was here…

"Are you real?" She asked, poking my shoulder.

I flinched.

"Yes," I said, rubbing my shoulder, "and a bit sore too."

Amy broke into a smile and leaped at me, squeezing me tightly.

"Oh my goodness, you're okay!" She cried disbelievingly. "You're alive."

I chuckled.

"Why would I be dead?" I questioned lightly. "I mean I had a spill with the bridge not five seconds ago, but-"

Amy cut me off sharply.

"You survived the fall?"

A look of confusion spread across my face.

"How did you know?" I asked.

Amy glanced down at the ground sheepishly.

"We came back to get you." She stated sadly as a warm feeling spread through my body. "But, you know the Doctor and his driving. We ended up a couple of years late."

I smiled.

"Yeah…" I smirked. "He managed to get me back there two years late."

Amy giggled before sobering.

"We visited your grave." She said simply.

I stared at the ginger girl for a moment. If I had a grave…

"They all think I'm dead." I stated emotionlessly.

Amy's eyes softened as she got to her feet, ignoring my statement.

"Come on." She held out a hand to help me up. "You look like you just came from a warzone."

I took it immediately. Glancing down at my arms and legs, I noticed that cuts peppered my legs and hands. I had only been wearing jean shorts and a faded, red sweatshirt which were now coated with a mixture of dust and explosion debris. I glanced down at my hands and groaned. They looked horrible, covered in cuts, dirt and blood.

"Yeah," I agreed wearily. "I guess I've looked better."

Amy snorted and glanced at the TARDIS. A strange look lit up in her eyes.

"Wendy…" She started, a suspicious smile appearing on her face.

I gulped.

I didn't trust that face.

"Yes…" I asked uncertainly.

"The Doctor's in there." She stated, grinning madly. "And he doesn't know you're alive."

My pulse quickened at the mention of his name, but I quickly dismissed it.

"So?" I asked.

The ginger stared at me intently.

"Want to have some fun?"

…..

I trailed into the TARDIS behind Amy. She sped ahead, instantly grabbing the Doctor's attention. My eyes flickered to his bemused face on their own accord.

It was still hard to believe that the pair of them were actually there with me. It was almost like I was dreaming. In fact, if it wasn't for the pain I felt, I would have dismissed the whole situation as a dream to begin with.

But it was real and I was actually here with Amy and the Doctor.

Amy's sharp voice pulled me from my reverie. I silently slipped around the console, stopping right behind the Doctor, who was currently arguing with Amy over whether ghosts were real.

"Amy, I don't have time for this." He ground out. "There is an impossibly strong creature out there. Deadlier than anything we've faced before."

Amy huffed.

"But they're real, Doctor." She snapped. "I've seen one."

"No, they aren't." He shot back.

"I can see one right now!" She yelled, shooting me a meaningful look.

I took a deep breath-

"What?" The Doctor exclaimed.

-and let out an ear-piercing scream.

The Doctor jumped and spun to face me. I tried to keep a straight face when he looked at me with a gaping mouth. But, I couldn't smother the small giggle that escaped at the look of his apparent impersonation of a fish.

The small sound snapped the Doctor out of his stupor.

"W-what?!" He stammered incredulously.

I only stared at him.

"Are you an alien?" I asked simply.

"What?!"

"'Cause you act a bit like an alien..."

"WHAT?!"

"But you don't look like-"

The Doctor's hand clamped onto my mouth while Amy broke down into giggles.

"You're alive." He murmured, pointing his sonic screwdriver at me.

I nodded, pushing the screwdriver from out of my face.

"How are you alive?"

I tugged his hand off my mouth.

"Someone caught me on the bridge and dumped me here." I informed him. "Now are you going to answer my question?"

"Time Lord" He answered impatiently. "What do you mean someone brought you here?"

I recalled the event.

"I was falling, but someone caught me." I frowned, still not recognizing the voice. "There was a tingling feeling and then I was here. That was about it."

The Doctor's eyes roved my face, as if he were trying to detect if I was speaking the truth. I felt a blush spread across my cheeks at the attention and began fidgeting. However, seconds later, he seized my arm, pulling me into a tight hug.

The Doctor held me close enough to hear his heartbeat… or was it _heartbeats_? I disregarded the thought and focused on the fact that my own heartbeat was fairly audible itself. I blushed and hoped that no one else could hear it as well.

"Hello there." I whispered softly. "This kind of hurts."

The Doctor immediately released me and looked me up and down. His eyes tightened at the look of my cut up legs and blood covered hands. He gently grabbed my elbow.

"Right," he stated morosely, "Let's make a quick trip to the medical bay."

He tugged me down the hallway, telling Amy to stay there.

We walked in silence until we reached the room that looked like a high-tech hospital. I grinned.

The Doctor caught the look.

"What?" He asked, slightly amused.

I gave a soft chuckle, eyes flickering between his face and the room.

"I'm just happy to be back." I smiled. "I've missed you and Amy."

The Doctor coughed, smiling as well. The Time Lord stepped over to the shelf and grabbed a spray bottle along with some pills.

"Well, your injuries aren't too bad, just a lot of cuts. All you need to do really is take a shower to get all the muck off of you. Then spray this" He held up the spray bottle, "on your cuts and it should be fine. Then take two of these pills to help with the soreness."

I looked a bit skeptical at his instructions.

"It's not perfect, but it will have to do for now." He supplied once he caught sight of my skepticism. "You dropped in on something dangerous, and I'm needed out there."

I nodded and grabbed the two bottles, standing up.

It was then I realized I had no idea where the showers were.

"Where-" I started, but the Doctor cut me off.

"Right across the hall." He muttered quickly as he got up, eyes now trained on a book. It appeared that he was back to work.

I gave a quiet 'thank you' and walked through the door. I immediately spotted the doorway, stepping forward when the Doctor's voice rang out from behind me.

"Wendy?"

"Yeah?" I called back, only feet from the room.

"Glad you're okay." He said quickly as he rushed to the console room, hand brushing mine.

Another smile crept to my face.

Yeah, I was glad to be back.

…..

After a half an hour later, I stepped out of the TARDIS feeling clean and energized. To my surprise, the medicine had done its work. I couldn't feel anything.

I spotted the Doctor and Amy from the corner of my eye. I immediately walked up to the pair.

"Are you all Mr. Grumpy-Face today?" Amy pouted as the Doctor fiddled with a machine.

The Doctor frowned.

"A weeping angel, Amy, is the deadliest; most powerful, most malevolent creature evolution has ever produced." He babbled tersely. "And right now, one of them is trapped inside that wreckage and I'm supposed to climb in after it with a screwdriver and a torch and assuming I survive the radiation long enough and assuming the whole ship doesn't explode in my face, I have to do something incredibly clever, which I haven't actually thought of yet. That's my day. That's what I'm up to. Any questions?"

"You definitely are Mr. Grumpy-Face today…" I muttered.

The Doctor spun around surprised to see me standing there.

"Hi!" I waved cheerfully.

The Doctor ran a hand over his face, muttering about companions not being able to stay in the ship and a face that no one listens to.

"Is River Song your wife?" Amy asked.

The Doctor turned and looked at her disbelievingly.

The Doctor let out a sigh.

"Who's River Song?" I asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

Amy smiled.

"Someone from his future, but he won't tell me who."

I stared off in the distance.

"It could be a friend…" I mumbled.

Amy's eyes grew wide.

"No…" she breathed.

I looked confused.

"Do you?" She asked, eyes flickering to the Doctor.

I froze.

"No." I nearly shouted, face flushing.

Amy smirked.

"Really?"

I glared at the ginger.

"Really."

"I think-"

"Well you're wrong."

"Anyways!" The Doctor interrupted, looking between us, confused. "Yes, you both are right."

Amy and I froze.

"I am definitely Mr. Grumpy-Face today."

"Doctor! Doctor!" A voice called from one of the bunker-trailers. "Father Octavian!"

I stiffened at the sound of the voice.

_Hello Sweetie. You'll thank me for this later._

I spotted the source, the woman who caught me spying earlier.

I nudged Amy and pointed the woman out. Amy looked at me surprised.

"Oh right," She said. "You haven't met her yet."

I nodded, eyes still on the woman.

"That's River Song."

….

"Anybody need me?" Amy called as I stood in front of the monitor, staring intently at the angel unseeingly. "Nobody?!"

Meeting River Song was something else. She greeted me kindly and smiled at me like we were already the best of friends. For all I knew, we could be. But, that wasn't bothering me. River had no control over how and when she met me.

It was the fact that River's voice matched the voice of the person who saved me.

Amy sauntered back into the room, nudging me with her elbow.

"It's a bit creepy isn't it?" She stated, nodding at the Weeping Angel on screen.

I glanced at her sheepishly.

"It's a bit more shocking for me." I explained. "I'm still not used to the fact that there are even aliens to begin with."

Amy laughed.

"We've all been there…" She muttered.

A small smile flitted across my lips before my eyes flickered back to the screen.

I froze.

"Amy, I think the angel moved."

Amy stared at the screen, immediately seeing that the angel was starting to look back at the camera. She left to ask whether there was more than one clip of the angel. I continued to watch it as she came back in, appearing perplexed.

"She said it was only the four seconds." She muttered, eyeing the screen intently.

"Then how did it move?" I asked her.

Amy only shrugged in reply and tensed.

My gaze returned to the screen.

The Angel was facing us now.

"I have a really bad feeling about this." I muttered.

Amy stepped closer, examining the time. I fought the urge to pull her back.

Something wasn't right.

"The time is the same." She noted, looking up to the screen again.

We both gasped.

The Angel was closer now.

"Amy," I mumbled, "I think we should leave."

The ginger shook her head.

"Wait a moment" Amy replied, reaching for the monitor's remote control. "Let's just see if we can turn it off."

I nodded as she proceeded to aim it at the monitor. It flickered off and on again.

She tried again, but nothing happened.

"Come on…" She whispered, trying again.

But it didn't work.

Amy placed down the remote and walked back to my side. I glanced at her.

"Something doesn't want this monitor turned off." I observed, still trying to shake the nervous feeling from me.

"But why?" Amy asked stepping forward again. "It's just a recording."

She moved to pull the plug to the monitor, but made no affect. Amy swung her head to the side.

"A little help?" She called.

"Sorry," I muttered, stepping forward and grabbing the wire as well. "Got distracted."

"By what?" She retorted as my eyes flickered back up to the screen.

I felt the blood drain from my face.

"By that…" I whispered weakly.

The face was right up close now.

Amy gasped, backing away slightly.

"This can't be right." She muttered. "It shouldn't be able to move."

"Try telling it that."

I tried to tug the wire out, but it wouldn't budge.

"It won't come loose!" I grunted, releasing it from my grip.

Amy however, backed away to the door.

"Doctor!" She called, as she tried to open the door. I turned to see that it wouldn't open.

"Great…" I moaned under my breath. "We're locked in."

I turned to the monitor and jumped back.

"Amy…" I cried. "I take it back."

Amy glanced at the monitor and paled at the Weeping Angel's now demonic-looking face.

"It is a bit creepy."

Amy gave a strained laugh and called for the Doctor again as I rushed to the door. I tried to open it as well, but to no avail.

"Doctor!" We screamed.

There was no answer.

"I'm almost afraid to look, now." I said quietly, but a small whimper made my eyes flick up.

A projection of the angel was _in_ the room.

I smashed numbers in the keypad to open the door while Amy continued to bang.

Nothing was working.

The Doctor's voice rang out from the other side of the door.

"What's happening?" He called.

I continued to stare at the angel while Amy talked to the Doctor. What did they say before? If someone was looking at it, it would remain immobile.

I noted that it wasn't solid, only a hologram that was flickering with the recoding. Its arms were outstretched, as if reaching for us. I shivered.

I didn't feel like dying today.

I took a step to the side, away from the doors. My gaze followed it from the ground, to its face. The statue was no longer peaceful with its expression. Instead, it still held the beastly appearance of a wild animal. And it's eyes…

"Wendy!" Someone called, but I ignored them.

It's eyes were so blank…

Amy was trying to get my attention.

They were so lifeless…

I barely recognized when she went for the remote again.

So empty…

Then it disappeared.

I blinked rapidly, spinning to see Amy holding the remote.

"I did it…" She breathed looking at me breathlessly as I turned back to where the angel had been standing. "I actually did it."

The Weeping Angel was gone.

The Doctor and River burst into the room, but I still stared forward, stunned.

What just happened to me? It was like it just transfixed me…

"I froze it." Amy cried happily, sounding in shock as well. "There was a sort of blip on the tape and I froze it on the blip. So, it wasn't the image of an angel anymore."

The Doctor ran past her, immediately checking the monitor's wiring with his sonic screwdriver.

"That was good, wasn't it? That was pretty good."

I would have laughed at Amy's little monologue if I could, but I couldn't move a muscle.

Why had I frozen like that?

"That was amazing." River told her in a soothing voice.

The Doctor aimed his screwdriver back at the woman.

"River," he called. "Hug Amy."

"Why?" She asked.

"Because I'm busy."

River immediately wrapped her arms around her.

"I'm fine." She protested.

"You're brilliant." River assured the ginger before calling out to the Doctor. "Want me to hug Wendy as well?"

The Doctor looked at her curiously before spotting my shell shocked figure. His eyes softened and I found myself enveloped in his warm arms. Butterflies rolled in my stomach.

"Sorry," He muttered into my hair. "I didn't notice."

I didn't answer and he pulled back a bit.

"Are you all right?" He asked, concerned.

I blinked before snapping out of it. I groaned, looking to the side.

"Fat load of help I was …" I muttered.

The Doctor only chuckled before letting me go and resuming his examination of the monitor.

River's voice broke the silence.

"So it was here." She stated. "That was the angel?"

The Doctor looked up from his work, slipping his sonic screwdriver back into his coat pocket.

"That was a projection of the angel. It's reaching out, getting a good look at us."

A grim look entered the Doctor's eyes.

"It's no longer dormant."

I glanced at Amy and opened my mouth to ask what had just happened to me. But, I was cut off by a large explosion.

I jumped, almost falling to the floor. But, the Doctor's hand shot up and steadied me. We all looked at each other with wide eyes before River and the Doctor ran to the door. Father Octavian's voice shouted out that they made it through the rocks.

They reached the catacombs.

"Okay," The Doctor stated. "Now it starts…"

He ran out the door.

I glanced over at Amy, who was picking at her eye. I stepped forward towards her, only to nearly fall over as a wave of fatigue overtook me. I stumbled as pain shot through my arms and legs, holding onto a nearby box.

"Coming?" River called as she exited.

"Yeah, coming…" We both called.

Amy looked ever at me.

"It feels like there is something in my eye." she muttered, walking towards the exit. "What's wrong with you?"

I flinched and shook the fatigue off, but my limbs remained a bit sore.

"Nothing." I immediately replied. "Just a bit tired for a second there."

Amy nodded and we made our way to the hole, watching as the troops dropped down the ladder one by one.

The Doctor glanced over at us.

"Ready?"

The pair of us nodded. He smiled a bit before slipping onto the ladder.

"Then let's get this over with."

* * *

**Sorry for the wait! I finally got access to my computer. I will admit, this arc will be a bit hard for me to write. Who knows why that is, but I'll keep moving on...**

**So, please review, favorite, follow, or do whatever else you want to do, I'm not that picky.**

**Next Time:**

**Wendy finds herself in the Maze of the Dead, surrounded by Weeping Angels. Not only is she terrified out of her mind, but confused over the enigma that is River Song and the lovely Amelia Pond who insists that she may have a little crush...**


	6. The Time of Angels: Part 2

**If you're reading this... then congrats! It finally loaded. For some reason... the site was giving me a lot of trouble. Sorry if you got a whole bunch of unnecessary alerts. Anyways...**

**I don't own Doctor Who, but if I did... Moffat and I would be besties :)**

* * *

I stumbled off the ladder, nearly falling on my face. My hands shot out, trying to grasp anything before I collided with the rocky flooring, but they only touched air. Luckily, strong hands clasped onto my shoulders, immediately steadying me. I glanced up to see a kind-faced soldier give me a curt nod.

I grinned from embarrassment, whispering a quick 'thank you' and ducking my head to hide my red cheeks. I scurried over to Amy just as the Doctor kicked what they called a 'gravity globe' into the air. I watched as the ball soared into the sky, halting when it reached its peak. Suspended, it quickly emitted a bright light, like our own personal sun. Amy looked around in surprise with wide eyes.

My eyes flickered up on their own accord and I found myself mimicking her, mouth agape.

"Wow…" I breathed.

The ruins were amazing. They were so old, so interesting. It resembled something I'd see in an Indiana Jones movie. The erected stone walls were crumbling while statues littered the area. However, one glance at the crumbling sculptures sent a shiver up my spine. They reminded me too much of the Weeping Angel from only minutes ago. And by the looks of it, Amy thought the same as she eyed the statues with disdain.

My sight focused on the Doctor, who spun around, taking it all in. His face showed curiosity and delight from the new scenery behind the stress and seriousness he tried to convey at the moment. Secretly, I wondered if the thought of saving the day excited him.

After all, he was all smiles for most of the Star Whale adventure.

His eyes flickered my way and I quickly looked up as if admiring the ancient turret above him.

I didn't know why I kept on doing that. I'd stare at him for great lengths of time, wondering what he was thinking or why he acted a simple way. Originally, I thought that it was because of the shock of seeing him and Amy again. But deep inside, I knew that wasn't true.

After all, it wasn't as if I was constantly staring at Amy.

I spun around, appearing to scrutinize the architecture once again as I bit my lip nervously.

There was more to it than the staring. Since I'd seen the Doctor again, it was all blushing and butterflies, which was ridiculous.

I tried to clear my mind as the logical reason for my behavior popped into my thoughts. It was most definitely not _that._ I'd only known him for what? One day? The thought of it was ridiculous, a tad bit deranged, and honestly…

The idea terrified me to death.

I could see it all. Those months in silence after my family's separate deaths taught me to observe the multiple façades I'd spot as people passed me by. And I could see the pain behind the Doctor's cheery mask. There was a cold fury hidden within him that screamed for the losses he'd suffered. It was the accumulation of years and years of sadness. Even if he appeared to be in his twenties, I knew better. No one that age could hold that much sadness, that much pain…

I laughed at myself, feeling ridiculous. Here I was, only having met him once before, declaring that I understood him. Something told me that was not the case. I doubted I would ever be able to claim to know the Doctor. I didn't even know his name.

The Doctor turned and raised an eyebrow. I only shook my head, trying to smother the melancholic look that has appeared on my face. Now was not the time to get distracted.

We had other troubles.

"It's the perfect hiding space." The Doctor declared, and I realized he was right. What a better place to hide then among the statues. The hairs stood up on the back of my neck as my eyes flickered from statue to statue. They didn't look the same though…

These were all decayed and crumbling.

We stood there in silence until Father Octavian spoke.

"Well I guess this makes it a bit trickier." He stated lightly. "A stone angel on the loose with stone statues… A lot harder than I prayed for."

"A needle in a haystack..." River breathed.

The Doctor spun around, looking for what I assumed to be any sign of movement from the statues. He glanced at my worried face with one of his own.

"A needle that looks like hay, a hay like need… of death." He rambled, keeping an eye on me out of the corner of his eye. "A hay like a needle of death in a haystack all full of statues. Actually, no, yours is fine."

I snorted at his monologue, slightly amused. The Doctor sent a quick smile my way before spinning to face Father Octavian as he began to speak.

"Right, check every single statue in this chamber." He ordered his men. "You know what you're looking for, complete visual inspection."

He turned to the Doctor.

"One question, how do we fight it?"

The Doctor took to inspecting the statues above us.

"We find it," he said simply, "and hope."

The Doctor strode ahead with Amy following immediately. I took one more glance at statues before trailing after them into a narrow pathway.

I caught up to Amy as she stopped, rubbing her eye.

"Are you alright?" I asked her, feeling a bit out of breath.

She only nodded, still looking at her hand. I walked ahead of her, trying to ignore the pain dull pain in my legs.

"Doctor?" I called ahead. "How long is the medicine supposed to last?"

He didn't turn back.

"About eight hours." He replied off-handedly. "Why?"

"Curiosity." I muttered, wondering what was happening to me.

Amy and River quickly caught up, standing by my side.

"Wendy," River called cheerfully, "I need your arm for a moment."

I nodded, warily positioning my right arm in her hands as she pulled out a syringe.

"Right, this won't hurt a bit."

"Bet your lying." I muttered as she pushed it into my arm.

And it turned out, she was.

I jumped, making no sound as she pulled it out, leaving me to rub the spot softy.

"It's a virus stabilizer." She informed me. "It stabilizes your metabolism against radiation and so forth. You're going to need it when we get up to that ship."

I nodded and stared off towards the Doctor, who was now checking each statue inquisitively. He pointed the flashlight in their faces, inspecting each one of them closely. It put me a bit on edge watching him so close to the statues. If it was an angel…

"What're you looking at Wendy?" Amy inquired following my line of sight and smirking.

I jumped, forgetting that Amy and River were there.

"Nothing…" I mumbled, looking at my feet and pretending to be quite interested with what I saw. The simple pair of tennis whose I had put on earlier this morning were quite dirty now. But, it didn't faze me

"It's okay." She quipped, still smiling. "I know the truth, after all."

River looked at the pair of us curiously.

"What are you talking about Amy?" She asked curiously, although there was a knowing glint in her eyes.

"Wendy likes the Doctor." She sang happily.

I immediately shushed her, glancing at the oblivious Doctor who was observing statues farther away.

"I do not!" I muttered indignantly.

"It's not nice to lie." Amy pretended to pout.

I gave her a withering look.

"I'm not lying. I've only met him twice. That's not enough to constitute what you're referring to."

Amy laughed.

"Doubt it."

River decided to cut in.

"I have to agree with Amy on this one."

Amy cheered out loud.

"Ha! I win!" She crowed. "The time traveler says you do. Now, there's no doubt about it."

I glared half-heartedly at River.

"Isn't there some rule against telling us the future?" I asked.

River smiled.

"But we're not talking about the future now, aren't we?"

Amy started to talk again, but Rivers eyes narrowed while she put a hand over her mouth.

"Yes we are." She called out to the Doctor, who was looking at his scanner intently.

Maybe a bit _too intently_…

"Sorry, what?" He called back, pressing various buttons on the scanner.

"Talking about you." River informed him. "And something about Wendy, of course."

I felt my face flush instantly at her words. My sneakers were suddenly looking interesting again…

"I wasn't listening!" The Doctor replied, still looking at the device in his hands. "I'm busy."

"Ah!" River acquiesced with a sarcastic nod. "Other way up."

The Doctor innocently flipped his scanner to face the right direction.

"Yeah…" He breathed while River gave Amy and me a knowing look.

I groaned, placing my hands over my beet-red face.

"He heard all of that. Didn't he?" I muttered weakly into my hands.

River only laughed.

"He only started to pay attention when I put in my two cents about you-know what." She whispered.

I sighed in relief, peeking up from my hands.

Amy was looking at River with a strange glint in her eye.

"You're so his wife." She stated firmly, shooting me an apologetic look.

"Oh Amy, Amy, Amy…" River muttered with a laugh. "This is the Doctor we're talking about. Do you really think it could be anything that simple?"

Amy didn't hesitate.

"Yep."

I felt my heart sink. It was true. She had the whole "heel boy" facade down. River was such an amazing woman, someone who'd match perfectly with the quirky bow-tie wearing Time Lord a good few feet away.

River only smiled at Amy.

"You're good. I'm not saying you're right, but you are very good." She informed the ginger as they took a few steps forward.

River glanced back at my immobile body and a flicker of exasperation crossed her face.

"You know," She whispered lightly, "I doubt I'd be able to make it as his wife for twenty-four hours without strangling him. Thought you should know."

The woman sauntered off, leaving me staring at her incredulously.

My face broke into smiles as I immediately berated myself for my sudden mood change.

"It doesn't matter…" I muttered under my breath, rushing to catch up with the group. "I don't even care…"

I almost wished I actually believed that.

…..

We ventured further into the catacombs, and the more I looked at the statues, the more uneasy I felt.

Something wasn't right.

"Isn't there a chance this lots going to collapse?" Amy observed, worry evident through her tone. "There's a whole ship up there."

I scanned the area and started to worry too. It did look rather… collapsible.

The Doctor and River simply brushed away her concerns.

"Incredible builders, the Aplans." River breathed, still inspecting each statue with precision.

"Had dinner with their chief architect once," The Doctor said simply. "Two are better than one."

I glanced at the Time Lord curiously.

"So you helped him then?" I asked, thinking of the possibilities.

He was a time traveler, after all.

"No, I mean he had two heads." He replied, still examining the area ahead of us with a flashlight. "That book, the very end, what did it say?"

River immediately flipped open the book the doctor had been examining earlier.

"Hang on."

"Read it out loud for me." He told her as he shined his flashlight high up to the ceiling.

River took a moment to find the page.

"What if we had ideas that could think for themselves?" She read. "What if one day our dreams no longer needed us? When all these things occur and are held to be true, the time will be upon us. The time of Angels."

I shuddered at the ominous text and stepped to the side staring at the catacombs with fear. It finally hit me that the Angel was here in the catacombs.

I could actually die.

The group continued forward and I followed them trying to stop my hands from shaking. But, nothing helped.

We started up the stairs and I found myself analyzing everyone as I fell to the back of the group. They all had different facades. The Doctor was heading the group, looking grim and focused as he stepped up each stair. River appeared calm, merely strolling up the staircase as her eyes roved over her surroundings. Amy followed faithfully, a light nervousness in her expression, smothered only by the fierce determination that came naturally to the Scottish ginger. Then, the Cleric and his men were calm and attentive as could be, guns at the ready for the first sign of trouble.

When I stared at them, I immediately observed my own reactions. It was pitiful to say the least.

Squaring my shoulders and clenching my jaw, I marched up the staircase with a stubborn stride. I had to be brave.

Now wasn't the time to fall apart.

It was only minutes later when Amy's voice rang out among the silence.

"Are we there yet?" She whined, causing a smile to flit over my face. "It's a hell of a climb."

"The maze is on six levels, representing the ascent of the soul." River told her. "Only two levels to go."

The Doctor began to say something. But, I stepped to the side, leaning against the railing and peering down into the vast chasm below. My stomach dropped as I saw how high we were. There were so many statues and…

I froze and leaned farther over the railing, straining my eyes to see.

Were the statues always facing that way?

I hesitated for a moment, leaning precariously over the edge. They had been facing forward when I first saw them. But now, they gazed specifically in our direction, just like the weeping angel.

I let out a small gasp and my hands began shaking big time as my mind zeroed in on a possible explanation.

But, that should have been impossible.

My eyes flit from statue to statue, noticing the small movements they made each time. I couldn't believe it. They said there was only one…

Two hands seized my shoulders, pulling me away from the edge as I continued to lean forward and inspect more statues. In my state, I probably would have tipped over the edge.

"What are you doing?" The Doctor exclaimed dubiously, dragging me deeper into the tunnel before spinning my shaking figure to face him.

But, I couldn't stay still as my gaze flickered nervously from statue to statue. The Doctor placed a hand on each side of my face, forcing my vision to focus on him instead. He instantly read the panic on my face and frowned.

"Wendy…" He whispered. "I need you to calm down and tell me what's wrong."

I closed my eyes and took a few shaky breaths.

"The statues…" I muttered, cheeks starting to burn as I realized how close we were.

The Doctor only chuckled.

"No need to worry!" He comforted. "They're just statues, these won't hurt you."

My eyes flashed open and stepped away, grabbing his wrist. Before he could protest, I dragged him back to the alcove I was at. My arm immediately pointed at the nearest sculptures.

"Look." I pressed.

The Doctor let out a sharp breath at the sight. The statues were reaching towards us now.

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" The Doctor muttered. "How is this possible… unless…"

The Time Lord's eyes widened.

"Aplans have two heads."

The Doctor snatched my hand pulling me back to the group.

"Nobody move, nobody move!" He shouted hastily, effectively convincing everyone to freeze. "Everyone stay exactly where you are!"

"What is it?" Amy asked hurriedly.

The Doctor's grip grew a bit tighter as a flash of guilt crossed his face.

"Bishop, I am truly sorry. I've made a mistake and we are all in terrible danger." He stated in a grim voice.

Octavian stiffened.

"What danger?" He asked.

I looked back over to the statues, trying hard not to blink.

"The Aplans!" The Doctor warned them. "They had two heads."

River gasped.

"How could we have not noticed?" She breathed.

The Doctor looked around, moving his flashlight back and forth between the statues.

"Low perception filter, or maybe we're just thick."

"Wait!" Father Octavian interjected. "I understand they have two heads, but why is that important?"

I caught on instantly, turning to the cleric.

"So then why don't the statues have two as well?" I stated with a shaky voice.

The Doctor smiled tensely down at me.

"Absolutely right!" He said quietly before shouting. "Everyone, over there! Don't move. Don't speak."

We all obliged, moving deeper into the tunnel, when he asked us to turn of the rest of our torches. Immediately, mine was out and as the others bickered about the point of this, I focused on the only source of comfort I had.

I focused on the fact that the Doctor was still holding my hand.

…..

I pumped my legs harder and harder as I struggled to catch up to the others. They were burning now. Only a minute had passed before the pain started, when I could usually maintain a good couple of minutes before exhaustion settled in. I knew something was wrong with me. It felt as if my medication was failing, something that didn't bode well with me in this situation.

I had been perfectly fine until that moment with the angel…

A flash of ginger hair broke me from my reverie. Amy halted, staring down at her hand strangely while the Doctor started speaking to her urgently.

I paused, struggling to remain standing upright. The Doctor's eyes flickered in my direction.

"Go on ahead with the others!" He urged before turning his attention back to Amy.

I nodded shortly and stumbled back into a run, only hearing him say in a chilling voice. "You looked into the eyes of an Angel, didn't you?"

My mind raced as I wondered what was so important about looking into the eyes of a Weeping Angel. I had done it and nothing happened…

But that's when I remembered; the pain. My medicine started to falter immediately after I fell into the trance.

A trance where I could only look into the statue's empty eyes…

I trotted forward into an opening between the tunnels where River and the clerics stood, guns trained on the opposite tunnel. I sighed in relief as I made my way closer, sending a tight smile to the harried-looking River Song.

Then my legs started wobbling.

"Oh no…" I muttered, plain fear evident across my face.

I fell promptly to the ground.

"Wendy!" River called, sprinting to my side. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head.

"What happens when you look into the eye of an Angel?" I questioned, carefully laying my pain-wracked legs in front of me.

River watched me dejectedly for a moment.

"I'm not sure." She admitted. "All I know is that the book said the eyes aren't the windows to a soul, but the door."

I stared blankly ahead.

If that were true, then the Angel could easily get in. There could be an Angel in my head.

"Did you look into the eye of an Angel, Wendy?"

I frowned and ignored her, pushing myself to my feet. I swayed for a moment, but River's hands shot out to steady me.

"Thanks." I muttered, still thinking.

An Angel could have a lot of power if it was stuck in my mind, from my knowledge to my actions. But, I doubted I would be any use to them alive. They probably would just kill me.

But if that was true, why was I still alive then?

Unfortunately, before I could think over the subject more, a soldier came running into the clearing as the lights began to flicker. He ran directly to Father Octavian.

"The statues are advancing in on all corridors." He stated, as everyone began to search the cavern for any statues. "Sir, my torch keeps flickering."

"They all do." Octavian stated grimly.

I fumbled with my flashlight, smacking my hand against the small tube to stop the flickering. I took a deep breath and eyed the entrance to the tunnel to my right, looking for any Angels. The others didn't need me worrying over something petty as a few aches.

River snapped back into serious-mode as well.

"So does the gravity-globe." She inputted.

Father Octavian took in the room.

"Clerics, we're down to four men." He informed. "Expect incoming."

"That is the Angels." The Doctor interjected, rushing into the room with Amy. "They're coming and they're draining the powers themselves."

"Which means we won't be able to see them." Octavian stated almost emotionlessly.

I wondered how he could possibly do that.

"Which means we can't stay here." The Doctor said as the cavern plunged into darkness.

The lights flashed back on and I spotted a shadow down the corridor.

My eyes trained on it warily.

"Any suggestions?" River asked the Doctor, more serious than I'd ever seen her before.

"The statues are advancing on all sides." Octavian inputted. "We don't have the climbing equipment to reach the Byzantium."

I glanced above to the aircraft's metal underbelly.

"There's no way back, no way out, no way up." River stated a bit panicked. "No pressure, but this is usually when you really have a good idea."

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment before they popped open and he examined the area.

"There's always a way out." He muttered and the lights went out for another second. "There's always a way out."

I found an Angel facing me, only a few feet ahead. Its arms were outstretched and face feral.

I gulped.

"Wendy, get back here." The Doctor nearly yelled, rushing forward to pull me back.

I stumbled along with no hesitation.

"_Doctor… Can I speak to the Doctor please?"_

I shuddered at the sound of the voice of the cleric who had helped me before.

The Doctor pulled out the communicator.

"Hello Angels. What's your problem?"

"_You're power will not last much longer. And the Angels will be with you shortly. Sorry, sir." _

I nervously eyed the Angels who had already arrived.

"Why are you telling us this?" The Doctor questioned him, frowning.

"_There's something the Angels were very keen you should know before the end."_

"Which is?" The Doctor prompted.

"_I died in fear." _

I felt my blood go cold.

"I'm sorry?"

"_You told me my fear would keep me alive. But I died in pain, afraid and alone. You made me trust you and when it mattered, you let me down." _

I watched the Doctor morosely, wondering for a moment how many others had told him the same. It was easy to tell that his lifestyle wasn't the safest. But I had seen what he'd done, the life of the Star Whale he'd saved. He even saved my life.

I sighed at the look guilt that surfaced on his face.

But the Angel didn't stop talking.

"_Sorry sir, but the Angels were very keen for you to know that."_

The Doctor looked for words to reply. And when he finally managed, a strange sense of determination set over his presence.

"Well then," He responded rapidly. "The Angels have made their second mistake because I'm not going to let that pass. I'm sorry you're dead Bob. But I swear, to whatever is left of you, they will be sorrier."

"_But you're trapped, sir, and about to die." _

"Yeah, we're trapped." The Doctor stated, voice rising as he examined the cavern once again. "And you know what, speaking of traps; this trap has a great big mistake here… a great big whopping mistake."

"_What mistake, sir?" _

The Doctor looked at us all, a smile twitching on his lips.

"Trust me?" He asked Amy.

"Yeah." She said immediately.

The Doctor turned to River.

"Trust me?"

"Always." She smiled.

The Doctor then turned to me.

"Do you trust me?"

I paused for a moment as I wondered if I truly did trust him. But the Star Whale adventure ran through my mind. He didn't let us down then. I doubted he would now.

"Sure." I replied, a hesitant smile playing on my lips.

The Doctor grinned as he turned to the clerics.

"You lot, trust me?"

Octavian looked wary.

"We have faith, sir."

The Doctor snapped his fingers.

"Then give me your gun." He said.

Octavian handed it over instantly.

I exchanged an apprehensive look with Amy.

"Does he even know how to handle that thing?" I whispered.

Amy shrugged wordlessly.

"I'm about to do something incredibly stupid and when I do, jump!" The Doctor stated, not reassuring my concerns in the slightest.

"Jump where?" Octavian questioned.

"Just jump as high as you can." The Doctor answered, beginning to look impatient. "Come on, leap of faith, Bishop."

"What signal?"

"You won't miss it."

The Doctor aimed the gun upwards when the Angels called again.

"_Sorry, can I ask again? You mentioned a mistake we made."_

I noticed he was aiming suspiciously close to the gravity globe.

"Oh, big, big mistake. Huge. Didn't anyone ever tell you that there's one thing you never put in a trap if you're smart, if you value you're continuing existence. If you have any plans about seeing tomorrow, there's one thing you never ever put in a trap."

"_And what would that be, sir?"_

The Doctor smirked.

"Me."

A shot rang through the area, the gravity globe exploding.

Taking that as the signal, I jumped along with the others, hoping my trust in this alien wouldn't kill me. But within seconds after the jump, something changed; something I couldn't explain.

We were still falling.

* * *

**Holy crap! I just saw the Christmas special and I about died at the end! I can honestly say that I'm looking forward to seeing the Capaldi's version of the doctor, even though I truly loved Matt Smith being on the show. I bet it's going to be epic! **

**Anyways, sorry for the postponing of this chapter. We're going to have to switch the updates to bi-weekly updates. I just took on a slightly impossible task that's going to be driving me crazy these next couple of weeks. It's to do with my Harry Potter Fan-Fiction, _Furnuculus and Stupefy don't Mix_. But, it'll all get done. **

**Also, thanks so much for all the follows, favorites, and reviews! These amounts are totally a first for me. Keep on being the amazing readers you are. **

**Love, **

**Marietta **


	7. Flesh and Stone

**I do own Doctor Who... in my dreams. **

* * *

_The wind whistled in my ears as I swung back and forth on the tree swing. My legs pumped harder and harder as I sought to grasp the sky, pulling me up to its seemingly infinite depths. The sky was a lovely blue today, but not the blue I wanted to see. That blue was somewhere out in space, exploring the universe. _

_I nimbly shot from the swing, launching myself in the air. My hand stretched to the sky, as if I could grab hold of one of the clouds and pull myself to the top. However, it was only a second later that I hit the ground, tumbling a foot or two until I rolled onto my back, facing the endlessly azule sky. _

_A distant shout from the house next door caught my attention for a moment and I cringed inwardly. _

_Marta must have seen my little stunt. _

_I ignored her calls, focusing on the sky above me before closing my eyes. Memories of the Starship UK surfaced immediately. I remembered all the running, the danger. I remembered the look in Amy's eyes when she saw me again and my first meeting with the Doctor. _

_A light blush dusted my cheeks as I remembered the odd man. He was beyond quirky, but at the same time, I saw the sadness that lay beneath his dark eyes. After all, I saw the same look in my eyes every day. He was, however, better at hiding it. But, as I grew aware of the sensation, I willed it to disappear. Strange things like that had been happening lately, whenever I thought of the Doctor. I'd daze off for a couple of minutes before the simplest of noise would bring me back to attention. _

_At first, I thought the dazes I would fall into in Leadworth were returning. But, this was different. Back in Leadworth, I'd be left with an empty sensation. When I thought about the Doctor, everything felt different. _

_I felt… warmer. _

_I brushed the observations away and opened my eyes, seeing the blue, blue sky. _

_A distant shuffling noise from Marta's house barely caught my attention as I gazed up at the calming expanse. _

_Were the skies this beautiful on other planets? _

_I sighed contently, trying to think of something more beautiful. It could sparkle, or change colors every few seconds, or…_

_I trailed off and shook my head, a sinking feeling entering the pit of my stomach. _

_It didn't matter._

_I'd never find out anyway. _

_A distant crash filled the air, startling from my thoughts. My eyes flickered over to the source, immediately spotting a worried Marta bustling across the yard towards me. _

_It was then that I remembered that I was still sprawled out on the ground. _

"_Wendy!" She screamed shrilly. _

_I suppressed a sigh. I sure did it this time. _

"Wendy!"

My eyes snapped open and I found the worried face of River Song hovering over me.

I jolted up into a sitting position, glancing around.

"What happened?" I asked, confused, glancing around. We were all on a metal surface of some sort.

I frowned.

We weren't there before…

"When we landed, you collapsed, hitting your head." River responded quickly, checking for signs of a concussion. "You've only been out for seconds."

I nodded absently, still observing our surroundings. The Doctor was using his sonic screwdriver on some sort of panel, it seemed. Amy trailed after him, asking him where we were.

My gaze shifted to the walls, and then the ceiling, the sight causing me to gasp. It was exactly where we were a few moments ago. In fact, it was the whole catacombs above us. Except this time, weeping Angels littered each clearing of space.

I gulped at the sight. The statues sure looked like the other Angel now.

"Wendy?" River tried, placing her hand softly on my shoulder.

I looked up at her, grinning nervously.

"Sorry." I muttered. "Just realized where we are."

River nodded understandingly, offering a hand to help me up. I reached out, trying to shift my legs to stand.

But nothing happened.

"What…" I breathed, trying to move my legs, but they only quivered weakly as pain shot through the limbs.

I dropped my hand, focusing on moving my legs.

"What's wrong?" River questioned me seriously.

I glanced over at the Doctor who was busy pointing out to Amy where they were before looking back to River.

"I can't move my legs." I whispered, wracking my brains for an explanation. The answer surfaced within moments, being quite simple. "My medication is starting to fail."

River's eyes narrowed.

"What medication?" She asked tensely.

I smiled half-heartedly.

"I wasn't in the best condition when I got here, you know. By the time I got to the Doctor, I could barely stand."

I made sure the Doctor was still busy as I whispered the last part out swiftly.

"The Doctor gave me medicine to fix it. But ever since the incident with the Angel, the medication has been weakening. I can move the rest of my body but nothing else."

River looked worried again. Her eyes flickered to the Doctor and she opened her mouth to call him out.

"Stop it." I muttered as sharp as I could manage, effectively hushing her. "We don't have time to worry over me."

"Well we aren't going to just leave you." She stated hardly.

I froze at the statement, mind racing. That didn't occur to me. But, thinking about it. Would that be what had to happen? Was I going to be left behind?

My body quivered at the thought of being left to the devices of those horrid Weeping Angels, but I quickly emerged from my reverie as River turned towards the Doctor again.

"We have enough trouble as it is!" I nearly yelled. "I don't want to be a bother!"

I noticed the Doctor out of the corner of my eye, eying River and my exchange with interest.

I gave him a strained smile and he sent me a confused look as he saw that I was still sitting. But, he disregarded it, opening the hatch.

"They're taking out the lights." The Doctor announced, grabbing all of our attention.

He looked at Amy, who stood uncertainly by his side.

"Look at them." He told her. "Look at the Angels."

The Doctor used his sonic as Amy eyed the ceiling, fear evident on her face.

The Doctor swung his legs into the hatch.

"Into the ship now, quickly!" He announced. "All of you!"

"How?" Amy asked, exasperated as he slipped into the hole. "Doctor?!"

Everyone moved to the hatch quickly as the Doctor's voice immediately reverberated from the hole.

"It's just a corridor." His voice called out simply. "The gravity orientates to the floor. Now, in here, all of you. Don't take your eyes off the Angels. Move! Move! Move!"

I trained my eyes above us, keeping watch as everyone dropped in one by one. Vaguely, I wondered what I would do. I tried to move my legs around, but they remained unyielding.

Maybe they'd have to leave me behind after all.

"Pedro!" I heard River call out. "Grab the girl and carry her. She's injured."

Immediately, strong hands shot out, lifting me up. I let out a gasp, as the soldier slung me over his shoulder like a sack, jumping down into the hole. I let out a little shriek when the gravity suddenly shifted. Pedro landed lightly on his feet.

River smirked playfully as I looked back at her indignantly.

"Is he going to carry me around this the whole time?" I hissed noncommittally, trying to shoot her a dirty look.

But, it was hard to muster up as a strong surge of relief swept through my system. I didn't want to die anytime soon.

River snorted, trying to smother giggles at the sight of my conflicted face. The Doctor, who was fumbling with the controls down the hallway, looked up at the sound, quickly doing a double-take as he spotted my slung across Pedro's shoulder.

"What on Earth are you doing, Wendy?" He called, eying Pedro as he carried me further into the corridor like a human potato sack.

I stiffened.

"Oh, you know…" I laughed nervously. "Just hanging around."

The Doctor rolled his eyes at the bad pun and stepped closer and abandoned the panel he had been working on previously.

I let out a gasp as I found myself lightly placed on the cool, metal ground. Pedro, shot me a curt nod before regrouping with the other clerics at the entrance of the wrecked ship we had entered through. The Doctor strode forward, kneeling in front of me, eyeing me somewhat suspiciously. But, I could see the concern his eyes held as well.

I smiled weakly.

"Wendy," he started seriously, "what's going on?"

I bit my lip, nervously.

"The medicine wore off." I said finally, lowering my eyes to the floor. "I can't move my legs."

The Doctor was silent for a moment, and I cringed at the lack of sound. It was only when I heard him rummaging through his pockets that I looked up.

The Time Lord was focused on digging through his pocket, his face fully concentrated. For a moment, I wondered how large his pockets were.

With a self-satisfied smirk, the Doctor withdrew his arm, holding the bottle of pills from earlier. Gently, he took out the stopper and handed the bottle to me.

"Take two." He instructed, returning to the controls by the door.

I fumbled with the bottle, shaking out two pills

"How was I supposed to know that he'd have the medication?" I grumbled under my breath, ignoring River's amused looks.

I popped the capsules in my mouth, instantly swallowing.

Within seconds, my legs un-seized, allowing me to stand shakily. River approached to help, her face having grown serious.

"How far is this for you?" She asked, a sad look entering her eyes.

A confused look flit across my face.

"How many times have you met the Doctor?" She clarified.

"Oh," I said. "This is the second time."

River's eyes widened.

"You're so young…" She breathed.

I shifted uncomfortably.

"I'm eighteen now…" I mumbled, looking around.

But, she was right. I had to be the youngest person here.

River smirked and caught my attention a second later as the serious expression returned.

"There's something you ought to remember." She stated. "When you're in trouble, you need to tell the Doctor. It doesn't matter if there's trouble. He _will_ help you. Don't ever think that you're not important enough."

I looked down guiltily.

"Do you understand?"

I nodded silently.

"Sorry…" I mumbled.

River's eyes softened and she opened her mouth to say something.

But she never got the chance.

Father Octavian rushed through the hall once the last of the clerics made it through the hatch. I moved farther into the hall, giving everyone more space.

"The Angels," he started, approaching the Doctor, "I presume that they can jump up too."

The Doctor activated the controls with his screwdriver, shutting the hatch.

"They're here." He stated gravely as he looked around the corridor with wide eyes. "Now, in the dark we're finished."

An alarm went off as a door between me and the group began to slide shut.

"Doctor?!" I cried, launching myself towards the entrance.

But it was too late. I hit the door repeatedly with the palm of my hand, trying to smother the panic rising up in me.

"Doctor!" I called. "What's happening?"

No one answered.

I shakily backed away, glancing over my shoulder for any Angels. The hallway was empty, lights beginning to flicker. But that didn't mean that none were there. For all I knew, the hatch wasn't the only entrance. And being stuck at a dead end with an Angel really didn't sit well with me.

I took a deep breath and ventured down the hall, scanning the area for anything statue-like creatures.

I continued to walk straight down the corridor, heading to the farthest door. I approached it, touching the control wheel in the middle of the frame. It looked futuristic, something that brought a smile to my face. Taking a deep breath, I placed my hands on the circular bar and began to tug.

Slowly but surely, the wheel reluctantly spun under the constant pressure, opening the door with a grating creak. I slipped into the room, ignoring the sound of the door shutting behind me as my eyes widened. I seemed to be in some sort of control room.

I walked around the room to the panels, glancing at the different lights that beeped and flickered before I collapsed uncerimoniously on the spinning chair behind it.

That really was a comfy chair.

"What do I do now?" I muttered, spinning around once in the chair. I should be safe in here, right?

A second later, the lights went out.

"Of course" I growled, tensing up.

I took a deep breath, trying unsuccessfully to calm myself. There were no Angels in the room. I'd hear to door open if that was the case. In fact, I was safe… in the dark… not seeing anything.

The lights flickered back on moments later and I let out a sigh of relief.

"Safe…" I muttered, spinning around once again.

However, a flurry of voices brought me back to the defensive for a moment until I realized that Angel's didn't really talk.

"Where'd she go?" One voice tutted nervously.

"She can take care of herself." Another reassured.

"I thought she was right behind the door! Why do they never-"

"I'm sure that she's fine."

" –stay put. It's rule number one: Don't wander off."

"Doctor, in here!"

My heart stopped at those words. It was the others.

The door began to open as I severely squished the foolish feeling that nagged in my stomach. It would have been smarter to have just stayed put, now that I thought about it.

The Clerics rushed through the cracked door one by one, spilling throughout the room. It was only River who noticed me first as she immediately made her ways to the controls. The moment she spotted me, she seemed to visibly relax.

"Oh, thank God." She breathed, cracking a smile at me as I spun once more in the chair.

"Doctor, quickly!" River shouted, along with Amy's cry of him to get into the room.

The Time Lord shifted in through the closing doorway, running to the controls beside River and I.

When his eyes rested on me, his face broke into a large smile.

"See!" He exclaimed cheekily to River. "Told you she'd be fine."

River rolled her eyes as he looked over the panels, muttering something under her breath before paying attention to the sealed doors.

As they both worked away, I slipped out of my chair, standing next to Amy.

The ginger looked at me tiredly.

"How're you holding up?" She asked.

I shrugged.

"This is the first time I've seen an alien." I muttered, something that had been nagging in the back of my head. "Are they all like this?"

Amy shook her head with a strained smile.

"Not all of them." She joked lightly.

I laughed shortly and stared ahead, eyes landing on the doors when I saw movement.

The handles were turning.

"Doctor!" I shouted, gathering his attention. "The doors!"

Octavian immediately sprang into action, placing a device on the door.

"What're you doing?" Amy asked, worried.

"Magnetized the door," Octavian answered. "Nothing can turn that wheel now."

I groaned quietly.

"That's almost as bad as 'Nothing can go wrong'." I muttered.

The Doctor seemed to share these thoughts as he looked up at Octavian, slightly breathless from all the running.

"Yeah?" He asked.

The wheel began to turn again, slower this time.

"Dear God." He breathed, turning around.

"Ah, now you're getting it." He told the cleric.

I stepped to the back of the room, watching the Clerics attach the same magnetizing device to the other doors. As they were all talking, I glanced at the Doctor.

I could see the nervousness in his actions, but his overall demeanor was calm. He was purposely putting that façade on, to keep other calm. Because if it looked like he had a plan, then everything would be fine. It was then that I realized that the Doctor had no clue how to get out of this. He was making this up as he went along. The thought brought a small smile to my face. That seemed so unbelievably like him.

I stepped forward, putting a brave face on as he and Octavian were discussing how long we all had left.

"Five minutes?" I asked lightly. "That's great! There are loads of things we can do in five minutes."

The Doctor shot me a smile before a thought stuck him.

"We need another way out of here." River called, eyeing the turning wheels.

"There isn't one." Octavian replied tersely.

The Doctor looked up, dashing away from the controls.

"Yeah there is." He started rambling. "Of course there is. This is a galaxy crosser. It goes years between planets. So, what do they need?"

We all watched him warily.

River suddenly jolted up from her bent position over the controls.

"Of course…" She breathed, eyes wide.

The Doctor grinned, pointing at her with a snap.

But what was it?

"Of course, what?" Amy voiced my thoughts. "What do they need?"

"Can we get in there?" Octavian asked.

Amy and I stared at everybody, lost.

"Well," the Doctor observed, looking at the back wall. "It's a sealed unit, but they must have installed it somehow."

He ran up to the wall.

"This wall should slide up. Clamps! Release the clamps!"

He, Octavian, and another cleric pushed away the storage container lining the wall.

Amy and I kept our positions, still having no clue of what was happening.

"What's through there?" I questioned. "What are you all talking about?"

River turned to face me.

"They need to breathe." She stated simply.

I glanced over at Amy questioningly and she gave me a little shrug.

The back wall slowly began to rise.

I felt my eyes widen.

"What…" I breathed, stepping to the Doctor's right side.

Amy followed similarly.

"But that's…"

"Is that a…" I trailed off, eyes flitting from one source of green to the other.

"It's an oxygen factory." River explained.

"It's a forest." Amy said disbelievingly.

"Yeah, it's a forest." River stated knowingly. "It's an oxygen factory."

I gazed ahead at the moss-covered trees.

"Is this like Narnia?" I breathed, immediately flushing due to the stupidity of my question.

The Doctor snorted, ignoring me.

"And if we're lucky, an escape route." He said, continuing River's statement.

Amy gave a little laugh.

"Eight."

I turned to look at her questioningly.

"What was that?" I asked her.

She glanced over at me.

"I didn't say anything." She answered, still looking at the forest with awe.

I frowned, pushing aside the curiosity.

"Is there another exit?" The Doctor started happily. "Scan the architecture. We don't have time to get lost out there."

Octavian rushed forward as I took a few tentative steps forward. I was about to step out when his voice sounded out.

"On it! Stay where you are until I check the rad levels."

I hesitated, before skipping my way behind a tree where Octavian wouldn't notice me spinning around as I took in the place.

The trees were tall, lush, and green, looking like an actual forest.

It was amazing.

The Doctor trotted in, walking straight up to me and my tree.

"Having fun?" He grinned.

"This is amazing." I breathed, watching him as he put a hand on the tree and pulled of some bark, revealing wires and flashing lights.

"Tree-borgs!" He announced. "Trees plus technology! Branches become cables which become sensors to the hull. A forest sucking in starlight, breathing out air. It even rains! There's a whole mini-climate. This vault is an eco-pod running right the heart of the ship."

The Doctor turned to grin his mad grin at us.

"A forest in a bottle in a spaceship in a maze," He proclaimed happily.

I started to smile, but a familiar tingling in my legs caused my face to go blank as one thought shot through my head.

It was starting again.

…

Branches whipped past me as I ran through the forest, struggling to keep up with the rest of the group. The medication was wearing off again, faster than before.

I knew the Angel had something to do with it, but nothing came to mind. My thoughts drifted to what I had been thinking about a while ago, if Angels could get into your head. But that didn't make sense. I'd be dead then, unless…

My eyes widened as I screeched to a stop.

What if it was the medication? What if that was what seemed to be keeping me safe?

My hand instantly shot into my pocket where the pills were stored, but found nothing. My mouth popped open in horror.

The pills were gone.

I searched the ground frantically as the blood drained from my face after each second. It had to have slipped from my pocket on the run through the forest.

"Amy, what's wrong."

I flinched at the unexpected voice and turned to see River holding a swaying Amy a couple of feet ahead of me.

"Four." She whispered.

Amy sat on a moss-covered rock, clutching her head before lying down. I remained where I was, watching her with wide eyes.

Did she stare into the Angel's eyes as well?

"Med-scanner, now!" River shouted at the clerics, sitting next to the ginger.

River started attaching the device as Octavian approached her.

"Dr. Song," he warned. "We can't stay here. We've got to keep moving."

River brushed of his warning with a hard glare.

"We wait for the Doctor." She stated tensely, giving no room for argument.

But Octavian didn't get the memo.

I glanced behind me, watching for any sign of the Time Lord as Octavian persisted. But there was no sign of him. After the call from Angel-Bob, he had remained behind, leaving us to go ahead of him.

A strained sigh slipped through my lips as I sat against a tree. It was getting harder to stand now.

I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, waiting for something to happen. The sharp pains in my legs subsided for the moment, something I was grateful for.

I heard River's voice filter through my ears.

"And Doctor, you're standing right behind me, aren't you?"

My eyes flew open and saw the Doctor standing nonchalantly at my side. I flinched at how soundlessly he approached and the return of pain to my legs.

"Oh, I hate you." River grumbled.

"No you don't!" He called, sending me a wink before rushing down to Amy. "Bishop, the Angels are in the forest."

Octavian began giving orders as I tried to focus on anything but the soreness in my muscles. River and the Doctor were huddled around Amy, whispering furiously. The rest of the Clerics were walking in circles, bordering the area we were in. But none of that could keep my mind busy.

I hummed under my breath, looking up at the metal ceiling and wondering what I should do. I didn't have any other pills left. Should I tell the Doctor?

I glanced over at the Time Lord attending to Amy and mentally shook my head. I continued staring up, running over memories of my family.

I didn't break out of the daze until the Doctor threw his communicator to the ground.

"Doctor, what's happening to me?" Amy whispered. "Explain."

The Doctor paced back and forth, frantically thinking.

"Inside your head, in the vision centers of your brain, there's an Angel." He rambled. It's like there's a screen, a virtual screen inside your mind and the Angel is climbing out of it and it's coming to shut you off."

A small smile reached my mouth at the realization that my theory was correct. Seeing no danger as of yet, I closed my eyes again, leaning my head against the tree behind me. Although the soreness of my legs disappeared, the fatigue remained. I listened to them speak, trying to keep myself from falling asleep.

"Then what do I do?" Amy whispered weakly.

I could hear the Doctor pacing again.

"If it was a real screen, what would we do?" He started. "We'd pull the plug. We'd kill the power. But we can't just knock her out; the angel would just take over. "

"Then what?" River asked. "Quickly!"

The Doctor groaned exasperatedly, trying to figure it out.

"We have to shut down the vision center in her brain. We've got to pull the plug. Stall the Angel."

A series of beep came from River.

"Doctor, she's got seconds."

My heart dropped to my stomach at the statement.

"How would you stall your lungs?" The Doctor asked her.

"I'd stop breathing." River responded distractedly.

I realized where this was going.

"Amy close your eyes!" He commanded.

"No," she moaned. "No, I don't want to."

"Good!" The Doctor exclaimed. "Because that's not you, that's the Angel inside you. It's afraid. Do it! Close your eyes!"

I didn't hear anything for a few seconds until River's med-scanner let out a shrill alarm.

"She's normalizing…" River breathed.

I let out a sigh of relief.

"You did it." She continued. "You did it."

They breathed out for a moment until River gasped.

"Amy wasn't the only one stuck with the Angel!"

A series of shuffles approached my motionless body. I frowned, only to jump when a cool hand was placed on my cheek.

My eyes flew open and I found River and the Doctor huddled over me.

"What-" I started as the Doctor grasped my face so that I looked him right in the eye. It would have been romantic and all if it weren't so unnerving.

He frowned.

"There's an Angel in there, but it's… blurry…" He observed, muddled by the sight.

"Probably the medication," I murmured.

"Right." He said. "Whatever it is, close your eyes."

I followed his orders straight away.

A sound of crunching twigs filled the air.

"Sir!" A Cleric soldier called. "Two more incoming."

"Three more over here!" Another one informed him.

River quickly examined Amy and I.

"They're too weak." I heard her inform the Doctor gravely. "It wouldn't be safe to move them."

"Can I open my eyes now?" Amy asked, much more strength in her voice this time.

The Doctor sighed.

"Amy, if you open your eyes now for more than a second, you will die. The Angel is still inside you. We haven't stopped it. We sort of paused it. You cannot open your eyes. Same for you Wendy, it seems that they aren't making you count down, so there's no telling when you will run out of time."

I nodded as Octavian approached us.

"Doctor, we're too exposed here." He informed the Time Lord. "We have to move on."

"We're too exposed everywhere." The Doctor replied a bit tersely. "And Amy and Wendy can't move. And anyway, that's not the plan."

"There's a plan?" River asked as I raised my eyebrows in astonishment.

"I don't know yet, I haven't finished talking. Right! Father, you and your clerics stay here and look after these two. If anything happens to them, I'll hold every single one of you personally responsible, twice. River, you and me are going to find the primary flight deck, which is a quarter of a mile straight ahead and from there we're going to stabilize the wreckage, stop the Angels, and cure Amy and Wendy."

"How?" River questioned.

I was wondering the same thing myself.

"I'll do a thing." He responded simply.

"What thing?"

"I don't know." He replied. "It's a thing in progress. Respect the thing. Moving out!"

I could hear him start to walk away.

"Doctor, I'm coming with you." Octavian said suddenly. "My clerics will take care of Miss Pond and Miss…"

"Darling." I put in tiredly.

"…Miss Darling. Those are my best men. They will lay down their lives in their protection."

"I don't need you." The Doctor stated a bit coldly.

"I don't care. Where Dr. Song goes, I go."

"What? Are you two engaged or something?"

I snort of laughter escaped my lips.

That seemed unlikely.

They continued to bicker until eventually, the trio began to leave.

"Doctor!" Amy called out. "Please, can I go with you?"

"You'd slow us down." Octavian called back.

I frowned. That was rude.

The Doctor approached me after he quickly comforted Amy.

"I'll be right back, Wendy. Don't worry. You and Amy will be fine. See you later."

He patted my head quickly before dashing off.

And there I sat until a minute later when a hand grabbed mine, pulling me to my feet gently.

"H-hello?" I whispered, reaching out and feeling a tweed jacket. "Doctor? You came back?"

The Time Lord immediately pulled me into a tight hug.

"Wendy," he whispered into my ear, causing a shiver to travel down my spine. "You're brilliant. I want you to remember that, alright?"

I nodded.

The Doctor let out a shuddering breath.

"Doctor, what's wrong?" I mumbled into his neck, trying to ignore the butterflies in my stomach.

The Time Lord chuckled.

"Nothing, nothing at all." He said, letting me go. "Just remember to keep on running. Don't look back, just run. It makes things a whole lot easier."

"Okay…" I responded uncertainly. "Are you sure nothing's the matter?"

"Nope." He stated, popping the 'p' at the end. "In fact, it's time for me to leave."

The Doctor remained silent for a moment, holding my hand.

"Goodbye Wendy." He whispered.

I felt him step closer, his warm lips brushing my cheek, causing me to jump in shock. My eyes flew open as I scanned the area around me, face growing redder by the second.

The Doctor was gone.

…

"It's weird looking at it. It feels really…"

The communicator cut off.

"Really what?" Amy asked into the communicator. "Hello? Really what?"

I sighed inching closer to Amy and sat next to her.

"He's gone as well." I whispered sadly.

The Clerics had been inspecting the crack in the wall. I'd seen it for a second, the great, white light. But as the soldiers approached the crack one by one, they'd disappear. They left until it was just Amy and I.

And it was scaring us.

"Hello? Hello?!" Amy continued to try. "Hello, please say you're there. Hello? Hello!"

I sighed resting my head against my hands.

What was happening?

"Amy, Amy!" The Doctor's voice filtered through the speaker. "Is that you?"

I felt myself relax at the sound of his voice.

"Doctor…" She breathed, relieved.

"Where are you?" He asked immediately. "Are Wendy and the Clerics with you?"

"Wendy's here with me, but the rest are gone." She informed him shakily. "There was a light and they walked into the light. Doctor, they didn't even remember each other."

I could only sit and listen.

"Oh no, they wouldn't…" was the only reply we received.

"Amy, Wendy, I made a mistake. I shouldn't have left you there."

I stiffened.

"Well, what do I do now?" Amy questioned.

The Doctor's response was instantaneous.

"You come to us at the primary flight desk, other side of the forest."

"I can't see." She reminded him. "I can't open my eyes."

A buzzing noise came from the speakers.

"Turn on the spot." The Doctor told us.

I stood, grabbing Amy's elbow and making her stand a well.

"Wait, what-" She started, before being cut off by the Doctor.

"Just turn on the spot!" He repeated a bit more forcefully. "When your communicator sounds like my screwdriver. That means you're facing the right way. Follow the sound."

Amy and I turned around until a shrill noise emitted from the speaker.

"You have to start moving now. There's time energy spilling out of that crack and you have to stay ahead of it."

I grimaced at the thought of waling blind through the forest. Amy couldn't waste anymore of her time. But I could.

My eyes fluttered open and I observed the area. The light was still a far ways away, but I could see it inching forward nimbly.

I reached for Amy's hand and started pulling her after me, ignoring the stabs of pain in my legs.

"I'll guide you." I whispered.

She nodded reluctantly.

"The Angels, they're everywhere." Amy spoke into the communicator.

"Sorry, I really am." The Doctor started. "But the Angels can only kill you."

"Well that's lovely." I mumbled, guiding Amy over a jutting out root.

"What does the time energy do?" She asked him in a small voice.

"Just keep moving." He enunciated, patience beginning to wane.

"Tell me." Amy growled.

I smiled back at the stubborn ginger.

"If the catches up with you, you'll never been born." The Doctor snapped. "It will erase every moment of your existence. You will never have lived at all."

I sucked in a deep breath as my gut twisted at the thought.

"Okay, time to calm down." I muttered under my breath. "Time to be brave."

I squeezed Amy's hand reassuringly and continued to guide her forward.

"Now, keep your eyes shut, and keep moving."

We walked in silence for a moment before Amy spoke again.

"You know," she began, "the Doctor told you to keep your eyes closed."

I forced out a laugh, struggling to keep upright.

"He told _you _to shut your eyes, not me." I stated. "Loophole…"

"But you could die." Amy insisted.

I shook my head, even if she couldn't see it.

"The medication I've been taking has been restraining the Angel since the beginning of this mess. I have much more time to spare."

The Doctor called minute later, informing us of the software he installed on our communicator. I merely shrugged the information off. I could see after all, even if it was becoming harder to walk by the second.

However, when the lights went out, thing went from bad to worse. I immediately froze looking around us in horror.

Amy spoke into the communicator.

"What's that?"

The Doctor spoke up instantly, voice grim.

"It's a warning. There are Angels around you now."

And indeed, he was right. Angels surrounded us by the dozen.

"Doctor…" I whimpered.

"Wendy, it'll be alright. But I need you two to listen." The Doctor reassured me. "It's going to be hard. I know. You can do it. The Angels are scared and running. And right now, they're not that interested in you both. They'll assume you can see them and their instincts will kick in. What you've got to do is walk like you can see. Just don't open your eyes."

"Too late…" I muttered, too low for the communicator to pick up.

"Walk like you can see." He repeated softly.

I sighed and edged forward.

"I-I'm really good at this." I tried to joke.

A hysterical giggle left Amy's mouth as I guided her through the statues.

"Come on, let's go." I murmured shakily pushing one foot in front of the other. "There you go."

My legs were on fire now.

"Wendy, are you okay?" Amy asked quietly.

"I'm fine." I answered, gritting my teeth. "I can do this."

Was my vision getting hazy?

"Wendy, close your eyes."

I ignored her.

There were black spots now.

"Wendy!"

I spun around to tell her I was fine, but my foot caught on a root. We both tumbled to the ground.

I rolled on my back looking at the Angels above us.

"I'm so sorry, Amy." I whimpered faintly.

My head felt weird.

"Wendy, I can't find the communicator." Amy said, starting panic as she patted the ground. "Can you see it?"

I couldn't move.

"Amy…" pushed out. "I think the medication wore off."

Amy searched the ground more frantically.

"Doctor!" She called. "I can't find it, Doctor."

"I'm really tired." I mumbled.

Amy turned to me.

"Close your eyes now!"

"But the Angels…" I whispered brokenly. "They'll kill us."

Amy reached for me, shutting my lids by force. I tried to struggle, afraid that the Angels would strike. But a moment later, a bright light flared around us and we were weightless.

Amy and I landed on the ground. Amy slowly rose as I curled into a ball. Everything hurt.

"Don't open your eyes." River warned. "You're on the flight deck, the Doctor's here, I teleported you both."

But her voice sounded all… weird.

"Wait, what's wrong with Wendy?"

I whimpered on the ground, unable to get up.

"Lost the meds…" I murmured. "I'm so sleepy…"

"Wendy!" A new voice shouted, the Doctor.

He kneeled beside me, brushing the hair out of my face.

"Wendy," he whispered. "I need you to stay with me."

I nodded wearily.

"Everything's so foggy…"

"You opened your eyes, didn't you?" He asked me grimly.

I smiled.

"Couldn't let the Angels get her. Amy and I would have been dead if I hadn't." The Doctor sighed and moved away, just as alarms sounded.

He shouted something, but I couldn't hear it.

Everything passed in a blur. Voices fell in and out of sync to the point where they made no sense. I tried a few times, but the strain made me tired. In the end, I just kept to myself, remembering that I had nearly died mere hours ago. This was sure some day.

My thoughts however, were interrupted when I felt someone dragging me, whispering desperately in my ear. The person guided my arms to a metal bar of some sort, placing my hands on the cool metal.

I did the only thing I could think of clenching my hands around it like my life depended on it.

Seconds later, I was weightless.

I struggled to hold onto the piece of metal that threatened to slip form my grip. It was difficult wrap my muddled mind around what was happening. I just wanted to sleep.

Sleep…

Yeah, that sounded good.

I slowly felt my consciousness fade, hands slipping from the bar right as I felt my body connect to the hard, frigid flooring.

And then, darkness.

…

The Doctor frowned, leaning against Wendy's doorway.

He steadily studied the girl's exhausted figure. She'd fallen asleep the moment the Angels finished falling into the crack's residual energy, finally keeling over to the sleep her body craved. The Doctor didn't want to admit it, but the way Wendy had held her own in the maze paired with her previous injuries and an Angel knocking about her brain was quite impressive to say the least. Even with her outright fear of the Weeping Angels, she still managed to find a way of keeping her and Amy safe, even if it almost did kill her.

It really peeved him at first to find that Wendy had gone off and opened her eyes when he specifically told her not to. But he blamed the face. It seemed to be a face no one listened to. However, when he really thought about it, he would have done the same thing in her place.

The Doctor sighed, slipping from the doorway to the girl's bed. She looked so peaceful compared to her harried appearance from earlier. Gently, he brushed her dark brown bangs away from her face, laying a small kiss on her forehead.

"Goodnight, Wendy." He whispered, silently shutting her door behind him as he exited into the hallway.

She deserved a good night's rest.

The Doctor immediately made his way to the control room, wanting to discuss something with him. He'd wanted to check on the slumbering girl first, though. Because in that moment, that one singular moment, the Doctor couldn't think of anything but one single thought.

Wendy Darling was quite brilliant.

* * *

**Holy Crab! I am so happy that I finally reached 100 Followers. I think that is so amazing! None of my other stories have skyrocketed to this point. It really makes me feel great you guys!**

**I'll be honest. This was literally a beast to write. I literally had to sit down and make myself write it. I'm not sure why as I originally thought it was going to be fun. But whatever. I've already started the next chapter... which is the last thing anyone will expecting. **

**Thanks again for all your support!**

**Marietta**


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